Skip to main content

Full text of "Variety (October 1958)"

See other formats 



| VIDEO 


TV FILMS 






STAGE 




Published Weekly at 154 West 46th Street, New York 36, N. Y., by Variety. Inc. Annual subscription, $15. Single copies. 35 cents. 

Second Class Postage Paid at New York, N. Y. 

COPYRIGHT, 1958, BY VARIETY, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 


VOL. 212 No. 5 

NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1958 

72 PAGES 


‘FREE SHOWS’ FLORIDA COME-ON 


Britain Asks U.S. Films Made There 
Carry Anglo-American Identification 


British producers have asked 
American companies making films 
in Britain to affix to their pictures 
the identifying title: This is a 
British-American co-production. 

The Americans, while not taking 
any rigid position on the question, 
take the view that such a prom-, 
inent identification was likely to 
hurt the chances of these pictures 
in the United States. 

In part, the British request is 
motivated by the desire to spot¬ 
light activity in the British studios. 
In part, too, it’s designed to elim¬ 
inate the American practice of 
sending coproductions, which rate 
as British quota films, into some 
countries as British pix and into 
others under the American flag. 

Some British producers, notably 
the Rank Organization, have long 
been unhappy seeing the limited 
British quota in certain countries 
in part taken up by coproductions 
which, under a tightened defini¬ 
tion. might not rate as purely 
"British.” One of the advantages 
the Americans have is that their 
earnings on such pictures can be 
remitted to the States, whereas the 
British producer must remit every¬ 
thing to Britain. 

American executives admit that, 
eventually, as a bargaining point, 
they may have to affix the copro¬ 
duction label. At the same time, 
they argue that it'd definitely be 
detrimental to the potential in 
the U.S. mart. "And that’s where 
the British want to make a dent, 
Isn’t it?” asked a foreign exec of 
one of the companies. Past experi¬ 
ence has shown that films identi¬ 
fied as British tend to do less than 
British pix which can be exhibited 
without that label. 


Japanese-Western Revue 
Blends Chinese <ha Cha 
With R&R in Bombay Bow 

Bombay, Sept. 30. 

Carroll Wallace, an American 
male who. appears on stage in the 
guise of a Sophie Tuckerisli J 
femme, is presenting here the first i 
Japanese-Western revue to visit 
India. The "Carroll Wallace Fol¬ 
lies” blend Oriental talent and 
(largely) Occidental music in a 
slick, fast-paced two-hour variety 
show. 

Performance ranges all the way 
from Awa Odori Nipponese cos¬ 
tume dance to rock ’n’ roll, and 
from Chinese cha cha cha “Sion 
Sion Toi Toi” to “OV Man River.” 
Artists, including the versatile 
Hayakawas (who provide the hot 
jazz band which plays on stage 
throughout the show), are all Ja¬ 
panese except for Filipino Tony 
Estrada and Singapore’s June Mok, 
both vocalists, and, of course, Wal¬ 
lace himself. 


Ike No Longhair 

Washington, Sept. 30. 

National Symphony Orches¬ 
tra, which is set for a South 
American tour next spring on 
State Dept, subsidy, has gone 
through the formality of pre¬ 
senting President Eisenhower 
with a cuffo box for the new 
season—with little hope that 
he will use it. 

Although the previous White 
House tenant, Harry S. Tru¬ 
man, was a music lover who 
heard the symphony often in 
Constitution Hall (and aided 
b.o. receipts by bringing in 
tourists wanting a look at him). 
President Eisenhower has at¬ 
tended only one concert in six 
years in office. 


Raise Issue Of 
U.S. Pix in Italy 
At ‘Red’ Theatres 


American film companies opera¬ 
ting abroad have never refused 
and for the moment do. not intend 
to refuse to serve any theatre be¬ 
cause its ownership may be Com¬ 
munist, a Motion Picture Export 
Assn, spokesman said this week.. 

He added that the lines of po¬ 
litical affiliation were not very 
clearly drawn in many places, 
“and, in any case, it’d be a tre¬ 
mendous job to do the checking.” 

Question has arisen in connec¬ 
tion with an issue in 'Italy where 
ANICA, the Italo producer-distrib 
organization, complained that U.S. 
companies were selling to Com¬ 
munist-dominated “cultural club” 
theatres in central-northern Italy, 
Variety’s Rome bureau reports 
that Yank members of MPEA in 
Italy have indicated they’d fight to 
prevent supply of U.S. product 
(Continued on page 14) 


F 


By LARY SOLLOWAY 


IT COULDN’T HAPPEN 
TO A RICHER GUY 

Cleveland, Sept. 30. 

Bob Hope kissed $100,000 good¬ 
bye wffien he invested it in Hope 
Metal Products Inc., of Cleveland, 
owned by his brother Ivor H. Hope. 
Assets of company, which filed an 
involuntary bankruptcy action, 
were sold Monday (29) at public 
auction. 

Ivor listed about 234 creditors, 
assets of $90,798, mostly in equip¬ 
ment, and liabilities 0 at $221,663. 
Bob Hope advanced his brother 
lOOG’s three years ago to help 
the ailing firm but could not help 
it from sinking. 


Miami Beach, Sept. 30. 

Miami Beach hotelmen, cur¬ 
rently engaged in their annual bid¬ 
ding battle for name attractions 
to fill out strongest possible lures 
for their cafes this winter, had 
their competitive headache com¬ 
pounded this week. This stems 
from disclosure that Morris Lans¬ 
burgh and his associates, operators 
of six large oceanfront inns, are in 
the process of setting up a series 
of one-nighters featuring the same 
top acts in the Deauville Hotel 
convention-auditorium on a for- 
guests-only policy, as a promo¬ 
tional gimmick to spark an upcom¬ 
ing national big-space ad campaign 
to draw clientele. 

The gimmick, obviously pat¬ 
terned on the Concord-Grossinger’s: 
format in the Catskills, will be a j 
costly one however, and not only j 
for the Lansburgh group. Some | 
rival hoteliers feel there will fol- ] 
low an inevitable revision of per-: 
former thinking in. terms of payoffs 1 
for the standard one and two-week 
bookings. 

According to Lansburgh, the sum 
of $650,000 has been earmarked 
to budget the one-nighter plan. It 
is based on a $1-$1.50 per room 
charge-off on the overall rates for 
guests at the Deauville, Sans Souci, 
Casablanca, Sherry Frontenac, Ver¬ 
sailles and Crown hotels, for there 
will be no liquor or food served, 
with the auditorium seating ar¬ 
ranged theatre style to allow for 
the 4,000-odd audiences expected 
(Continued on page. 58) 


TV Better Buy Than Dailies’: Buick; 
Newspapers in Showdown Fight 


The Superior French 

Quote John Huston on the 
subject of film censorship: 

“I . don’t believe in any cen¬ 
sorship except that of good 
taste, and that holds true of 
Hollywood as much as for its 
audience. 

"I very mucii uphold the 
idea of the French theatre 
where, if an audience is of¬ 
fended by a play, they just 
tear up the seats.” 


Phono Famine 
ies Stereo 


Both here and abroad, the stereo 
bally is having a strong impact on j 
the consumer level despite the lack ’ 
of suitable phonograph machines 
on the market. At the present time, 
the phonograph manufacturing end 
is the big bottleneck in the stereo! 
picture, but it’s expected that the I 
phono distribution channels will be ! 
flowing at full volume in a few 5 
weeks. 

RCA, which is accenting stereo 
heavily this fall, sparked its fall 
selling campaign with a meeting 
for its phono and disk dealers at 
the Barbizon-Plaza Hotel, N. Y., 
Monday (29), night. George Marek, 
RCA Victor disk v.p. and general 
manager, and other execs from the 
phono division and the Bruno dis¬ 
tribution company, made strong 
pitches to point up the dollar po¬ 
tential in the new stereo biz. 

Marek, who left for Japan by 
way of the Coast immediately after 
the meeting, said that stereo has 
caused a major stir in foreign disk 
circles abroad as well. He has re- 
(Continued on page 19) 


ASCAP Yielding 
‘Secrets to BMI 
In Cleffer Suit 

_ j 

Broadcast Music Inc. now has a 
ele:* r anrf un r *hall f 'n"ad to , 
amine the American Society of 
Composers, Authors & Publishers’ 
performance cards. The final green- 
light was given in N. Y. Federal 
Court yesterday (Tues.) before 
Judge Gregory Noonan when' 
ASCAP attorneys consented, with- ! 
out argument, to a BMI motion 
ordering ASCAP to make its rec¬ 
ords available. I 

At the same time, BMI agreed. 
to make comparable information - 
from its files available to the 33 
ASCAP songwriters who are the . 
plaintiffs in . the $150,000,000 anti¬ 
trust suit against BMI and the; 
major broadcast networks. 

ihe move to examine tue 220,000 
ASCAP cards, on which the per¬ 
formance history of tunes in the 
ASCAP repertory is recorded, has 
been the subject of a long, hard- 
fought argument between ASCAP 
and BMI attorneys. ASCAP has 
claimed that to give BMI its cards 
would be to disclose private busi- 
(Continued on page 46) 


' The fullscale television vs. news¬ 
paper media war, which has been 
threatened over the years, has 
finally erupted over the McCann- 
Erickson decision to spend most 
of the Buick advertising budget in 
television introducing the 1959 
models. 

The television and newspaper 
battles are both old and new in 
that both mediums fight for adver¬ 
tising dollars. But, never has the 
warfare broken open over a deci¬ 
sion by' a manufacturer 'and an 
agency to spend their allocation 
in a particular manner. First signs 
of ’the current battle broke out 
last summer when Buick an¬ 
nounced that it was cutting its 
newspaper listing drastically. It 
was assumed by this, that the auto¬ 
mobile fi m was going to heavily 
accent television.- 

While the sparks flew, the fire 
wasn’t actually lit until this week 
and all because of two reports, one 
titled “Buick Advertising & Mer¬ 
chandising Report No. 2” and a 
second sludy, a cost comparison 
report completed by McCann- 
Erickson itself. 

McCann-Erickson, in attempting 
to determine how to get the most 
out of its advertising dollar, re¬ 
tained Advertest Research to com¬ 
plete a media study. The Advertest 
report showed that 59% of Buick 
shoppers said tv advertising stood 
out most strongly in their minds, 
as opposed to 12% for newspapers 
and 29% for magazines. The study 
struck another blow at newspaper 
(Continued on page 40) 


BRITAIN EXTENDING 
OPERA TO PROVINCES 

London, Sept. 30. 

London Coliseum will mount an 
opera season lasting from next 
April through to December, this 
will be presented by the Sadler’s 
Wells Opera Co. under a new plan 
designed to provide a better basis 
for touring opera and also a more 
stable future for the Wells. 

The scheme calls for the existing 
company to be enlarged to com¬ 
prise two choruses, two orchestras, 
two opera ballets and a pool of 
principal singers. The plan will 
ensure that the provinces get be¬ 
tween . 25 and 30 weeks of opera 
during the year, and also that the 
two companies get a full year’s 
employment 


U.S. Correspondents’ 

Fast Turnover in USSR; 
TV Blasts Vs. Yanks 

By IRVING R. LEVINE 

(Moscow correspondent, NBC) 

Moscow', Sept. 30. 

The radio and press corps in 
Moscow, a tight little island of 14 
Americans, has undergone a sud¬ 
den change in faces because of 
transfers and expulsions. Various 
viruses have also added to the 
normal hazards of new's coverage in 
the Soviet capital. 

"Stringer” correspondents for 
the major networks have left Mos¬ 
cow for new assignments. Whitman 
Bassow, United Press correspon¬ 
dent who also-had done occasional 
broadcasts for ABC, departed to ac¬ 
cept a year’s fellowship at the 
Council on Foreign Relations in 
New York. B. J. Cutler, corres¬ 
pondent for the N.Y. Herald Trib¬ 
une, received a transfer to Paris 
as reward for his Moscow services; 
Cutler had substituted for Daniel 
Schorr and Paul Niven, CBS, dur¬ 
ing their absences from Russia. 
Roy Essoyan. able Associated Press 
reporter, was expelled by"-the Rus¬ 
sians (the fifth American corres¬ 
pondent ordered out in the past 
(Continued on page 16) 














s 


MlSCBlxm 


vssiefT 


Wednesday, October I, 1958 



Poised For US. As Race Starts To 
Cash In On Yanks Yen For Jap Acts 


Bf DAVE JAMPEL 

Tokyo, Sept 30. 

Traffic of Japanese entertainers 
to the U. S. during the next sev¬ 
eral years may be heavy enough to 
ease Japan’s problem of overpopu¬ 
lation. In various stages of ne¬ 
gotiation are plans to transplant 
local performers to American night 
clubs, tv, concert arenas* theatre 
circuits, Broadway and the* Met 
These would include stylists from 
clarinetists to chorus girls to ka- 
buki actors, from rockabilly to bun- 
raku. 

During the past year a number 
of U. S. show biz reps have made 
the pilgrimage to Japan to comb 
for talent With American tv hav¬ 
ing persistent hunger pangs and 
other mass entertainment media 
only slightly less zealous in their 
appetites, the Imperial Hotel din¬ 
ing room is getting the overflow 
from Lindy’s and the Brown Derby. 

The so-called “Japan Room” in 
the U. S. is no figment of a press 
agent’s pipe dream. It is reaL 
"Sayonara” was boffo b.o. jmd 
three productions with Oriental 
backgrounds are skedded for 
Broadway this season. The race 
is on. 

Latest to be revealed as in the 
Oriental act is Sol Hurok. If all 
goes according to plan, the U. S. 
will see its first full-scale kabuki 
troupe in April, I960. Preceding 
that huge undertaking on Hurok’s 
Japan agenda is a project of equal¬ 
ly titanic proportions. Starting 
next August, he will tour a com¬ 
pany of 100 Osaka Shochiku Ka- 
geki (OSK> girls plus a staff of 
20 around a circuit of U. S. the¬ 
atres. 

Brimming with commence over 
the possibilities of these tours is 
(Continued on page 16) 


Robeson Churching 

London, Sept. 30. 

Paul Robeson will sing at 
the evening service at St. 
Paul’s Cathedral on Sunday, 
Oct. 12. 

After Robeson’s recital, 
which will last for about 30 
minutes, there will be a collec¬ 
tion for the Defense and Air 
Fund, established by Christian 
Action in connection with the 
treason trials in South Africa. 


ITALY TO MARK 100TH 
AM OF DUSE’S BIRTH 

Rome, Sept. 23. 

A series of celebrations have 
been set to mark the 100th anni¬ 
versary of Eleonora Duse’s birth, 
next Oct 3. Rome’s ACT Theatre 
Club is planning a special ’‘Images 
and Times of Eleeonora Duse” 
evening, to be directed by Luchino 
Visconti and featuring such vet ac¬ 
tors as Tullio Carminati, Emma 
Gramatica, Rina Morelli, Paolo 
Stoppa, Gino Cervi, Andreina Pag- 
nari, Vittorio Gassmann and Rosel- 
la Falk. 

A special scene is also slated for 
Luise Rainer, while among others 
present at the event will be de¬ 
signer Gordon Craig, a Duse con¬ 
temporary. Other Duse celebra¬ 
tions will be held at Milan, in the 
Scala Theatre’s Theatrical Muse¬ 
um; at Asolo, where the famed 
actress is buried; and at Vigevano, 
where she was born. 


Must Pay Admish 
Taxes Pronto On 
Advance Sales 


New York. 

Editor, Variety: 

The Government has just come 
out with an admission tax ruling 
that will cause a profound change 
in procedures previously followed 
in the theatre. 

It is the Government’s position, 
set forth in Ruling No. 366 of the 
1958 series, that when tickets are 
sold for a future performance, the 
admission tax is payable immedi¬ 
ately. The general practice has 
been for boxoffice treasurers te-re- 
tain funds on advance sales until 
the date of the performance and 
release those funds to the producer 
on that date (after deducting the 
percentage for the theatre rental). 
The admission tax has been paid 
as if the tickets were sold on the 
date of the performance. 

Obviously, under this new rul¬ 
ing the tax will have to be paid 
much earlier. That will affect the 
whole relationship between the 
handling and timing of the treas¬ 
urer’s funds and the turning over 
of the tax money to the Govern¬ 
ment and the remaining money to 
the producer. 

J. S. Seidman 
(Seidman & Seidman) 


[Veterans Hospitals 

Now Cinemascoped 

Veterans Administration in the 
U.S. is just now comrng around 
to installing CinemaScope screens 
and projection lenses in some 150 
of its .hospital posts around the 
country. Up till now, the VA 
hospitals had been unable to book 
any CinemaScope films. 

.Installations should be com¬ 
pleted by the first of the year, in 
both 35m and 16m. Like the Army 
and Navy, the VA does its own, 
individual booking of pictures. 


Subscription Order Form 

Enclosed find check for $ 

□ One Year 

Please send VARIETY for □ Two Years 

□ Three Years 


To 


(Please Print Name) 


Street 
City... 


Zone.. State... .. ..'r 


Regular Subscription Rates 
One Year—$15.00 Two Ye a rs $28.00 

Three Years—$39.00 

Canada and Foreign—$1 Additional Per Year 
tSfifSIETY Inc. 

154 W«tf 46tl« Street New York 36, N. Y. 


3pnros Skouras, Si^er 

Chicago, Sept. 30. 

It’s old hat for exotics to be 
tagged With a cute variation of a 
celeb’s name. Now comes a war¬ 
bler from Greece with the adopted 
name of Spiros Skouras. 

; No relation' to the 20th-Fox top¬ 
per who spells it Spyros, the 
singer, making his U. S. bow in the 
current Chi Blue Angel revue, sim¬ 
ply dropped the first three letters 
(kou) from his real surname. 


Even PMly Hep, 
No More Sticks: 
Gregory Peck 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

They’re hep in the so-called 
sticks; in fact, there are no more 
sticks, avers Gregory Peck follow¬ 
ing an eight-city tour on behalf of 
“The Big Country,” in which he 
stars. Peck remarked his personals 
“confirmed what I’ve always felt. 
There are no more sticks. They’re 
pretty hep in Dallas, Chicago and 
even Philadelphia. They know 
what’s going on. Their tastes are 
the same as those in New York 
and Hollywood.” 

Actor opined "we are not creat¬ 
ing entertainment for the trade, 
hut for the public. Our tastes be¬ 
come ingrown. We are making our 
pictures for the public. They are 
sharp and are Usually right in 
their likes and dislikes.” 

Asked what questions were 
thrown at him on his junket, the 
(Continued on page 71) 


Timmie Plans To 
Sue Bailey & U.S. 

By HAZEL GUILD 

Frankfurt, Sept. 30. 

Following the two-day court- 
martial in Kaiserslautern, Ger¬ 
many, of Major Leonard V. Bailey, 
which found him guilty Df disor¬ 
derly conduct under Article 135, 
and fined him $1,000, Timmie Rog¬ 
ers will go into the German court 
at Kaiserslautern to seek payment 
of the hospital hill from Bailey 
for treatment of three broken ribs 
caused when the U. S. Army officer 
hit him at the Baumholder Offi¬ 
cers’ Club last Aug. 2. 

Although previous to the court- 
martial Bailey completely, denied 
touching Rogers, in court he ad¬ 
mitted striking him with his hands 
on head and body. It is now first 
a matter of seeking civil recovery, 
in the local civil courts, for the 
medical damages, according to the 
Negro emcee-entertainer’s attorney 
in Frankfurt. Latter opines Rogers 
can claim the damages from Major 
(Continued on page 18) 


Nostalgia Flowed Like 
Chianti At Lambs’ Shindig 

With the 40th wedding anniver¬ 
sary of Lambs Club Shepherd Wil¬ 
liam Gaxton coinciding with the 
40th anni of Teddy’s Restaurant, 
now operated by Sal Cuccinata, 
also a Lamb, it was decided to 
mix both anniversaries so that 
some of the greats in show biz 
could recall old times for the edi¬ 
fication of the press and to relive 
some of the top moments of their 
lives. 

The party held Monday (22) 
didn’t work out exactly that way, 
despite the fact that it was a rich 
and rewarding evening. The nos¬ 
talgia was mixed with a powerful 
plea for the future of the theatre 
by Helen Menken of American 
Theatre Wing, and a plea by Gax¬ 
ton that the skills of so many 
(Continued on page 14) 


Road to El Cuffo 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Hope and Crosby are back 
on that road again. 

Thursday night Boh Hope 
guested on Frank Parker’s 
KTLA show, a cuffo favor for 
an old pal; the same night 
Bing Crosby was a guest on 
George Jessel’s KCOP Inter¬ 
view program. Crosby and 
Jessel are 'friends—and der 
Bingle is one-fourth owner of 
KCOP. It was Crosby’s first 
local guestint. 


1 By LES AMI) LIZ CARPENTER 


Washington, Sept 30. 

Commissioner John S. Cross of 
the Federal Communications Com¬ 
mission took note of the new sea¬ 
son^ of tv programs with this ob¬ 
servation: 

“It’s all familiar—girls with 38 
sweaters and men with 45 guns! " 

(The gag is also around FCC 
that NBC means “Nothing But Cow¬ 
boys.”) 


Latest local wheeze is that Sher¬ 
man Adams has selected his next 
position.-They say he’ll, open 
gift shop. 


Meade Alcorn, chairman of the 


‘Uncle Toms' 


To Confederates! 


Worldwide distribution rights 
to the 1927, Universal Pictures pro¬ 
duction of “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” 
have been acquired by Colorama 
Features Inc. (Jules Weill and 
Carroll Puciato) which has pur¬ 
chased thenegative.from Univer¬ 
sal. 

Raymond Massey has recorded 
the narration and the new sound¬ 
track also' includes a full chorus 
and a musical score by the late 
Erno Rappee. Introduction with 
Massey has been filmed on loca¬ 
tion. in Litchfield, Conn., birth¬ 
place of Harriet Beecher Stowe, 
who wrote the hook over 100'years 
ago. Its publication greatly fired 
the anger of the North oyer the 
treatment of the slaves in the 
South. 

Several other versions of “Un¬ 
cle Tom’s Cabin” were made in 
Hollywood prior to 1927. Major 
companies as a rule are reluctant 
to sell negative rights to their pic¬ 
tures to other distribution outfits 
in the theatrical field. Audie Mur¬ 
phy, star of John Huston’s “Red 
Badge of Courage,” at one time 
offered Metro $500,000 for the 
negative rights.to the film, which; 
was considered a flop. Yet Metro 
refused. 


Coast Friars’ 10th Anni 
Spotlights Lucy & Desi 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Joining Lucille Ball and Desi 
Araaz on dais for Friars Club 
testimonial banquet Nov. 23 will 
he Jack Benny, George Burns,. 
Eddie Cantor, Sammy Davis Jr., 
George Jessel, Art Linkletter and 
Tony Martin. 

Club’s 10th anniversary charity 
dinner will be held at Beverly Hil¬ 
ton HoteL G. Jessel is toastmas¬ 
ter. 


Republican National Committee,' 
reluctantly accepted,* invitation' 
to appear on Dave Garroway’s tv 
show the morning after Sherman 
Adams quit. 

Alcorn’s reluctance was the early 
hour of the program. But the NBC 
contact man offered to send a 
chauffeured limousine for Alcorn 
to carry him from home to studio. 

Well before 8, the GOP VIP 
was given a comfortable ride in the 
rented Cadillac to the ABO’studio. 

“There’s some mistake,” Alcoin 
was told at ABC. “We don’t parry 
Dave Garroway. You want NBC.” 

The chauffeur drove Alcorn to 
the CBS studio. Another mistake 
was noted. 

‘Til make it this time,” an¬ 
nounced the driver. 

And Alcorn explained later: “I 
walked in NBC with no time to 
spare. They told me I was on the 
air.” 

Later, in a National •Press 'Club 
speech, Alcorn ,pooh-poohed ram¬ 
pant prophecies that the Democrats 
will clobber his party this No¬ 
vember. 

It reminded Alcorn, he said, of 
the time a medic told W. C.. Fields 
that his difficulty with hearing zoos 
caused by his drinking. 

“The hell with it,” Fields re¬ 
sponded, according to Alcorn. 4< I 
like what I’m. tasting better than 
what I’m hearing /” 

And, Alcorn said, he likes what 
he's seeing in his cross-country 
tours better than what he is hear¬ 
ing. 


In the same speech, Alcorn be¬ 
came .perhaps, the only GOP na¬ 
tional chairman who will he quoted 
on the Broadway stage. 

Playwright Howard Teichmann, 
whose political satire, “The Girls 
in 509,” was trying out at the Na¬ 
tional Theatre at the time, was sit¬ 
ting in the audience when Alcorn 
declared: “We’ve got to get the 
warm bodies to the polls!” 

“That’s it,” exclaimed Teich- 
mann, reaching for a penciL 
He' said that as soon as he could 
get to his trypewriter, he intended 
(Continued on page 16) 


ITALO RAI-TV GETS 
NOD ON OLYMPICS 

Rome, Sept. 30. 

The International Olympic 
Games Committee has officially 
granted RAI-TV, the Italian tele¬ 
vision network, permission to tele¬ 
cast the 1960 Rome Olympic Games 
over the national telenetwork. 

Word of this decision is said to 
have been revealed to RAI-TV this 
week by Otto Mayer, Swiss Chan¬ 
cellor of the Comite International 
Olymipique. Permission was said 
granted in view of the more than 
probable seating shortage at the 
■upcoming local games. Feeling 
was that telecasting of games in 
this country- would therefore not 
affect ticket sales to events. 



Trad* Mark Registered 


FOUHPID ms by SIMK SILVERMAN; Published Weekly by VARIETY, INC. 
Syd Silverman, President 

154 West 46th St.. New York 36 . N. Y. JUdson 2-2700 

HoHywood SB 

6404 Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood *-1141 
Wiihhnhn 4 

1202 National Praia Building, STerling 2-5445 
Chicago 11 

612 No. Michigan Ave., DEUware 7-4964 
London WCS 

8 St. Martin’* PH Trafalgar Sq., COVent Garden 0135 


SUBSCRIPTION 

Annual, 615; Foreign, 616; Single Copies, 35 

Cents 

’ ABEL GREEN, Editor 

Volume 212 


^> 1M Number 5 


INDEX 


Bills ...>. 


Night Club Reviews . 


Chatter .. 


Obituaries . 

.71 

Film Reviews . 

. 6 

Pictures. T 

3 

House Reviews 


Radio . 

.21 

Inside Music .. 


Radio Reviews ...... 


Inside Pictures 


Record Reviews .... 


Inside Radio-TV 


Frank Scully .;. 


inside Vaude .. 


Television . 

..... 21 

International .. 


Television Reviews . 


Legitimate .... 


Tollvision ... 


Literati _... 


TV Films . 


Music . 

..._ 46 

Unit Review ....... 


New Acts ... 

.' ... 60 

Vaudeville _ 

SR 


1 


_ DAILY VARIETY 

(Published In Hollywood by Daily Variety, LtdJ 
•15. Jt year. 620 Foreign. 
































Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


PSitlET? 


PICTURES 


S 


KIRK DOUGLAS: ACTOR-TYCOON 


Allied to Ponder 
'Beyond Divorce’ 

Taking note of the agitation for 
a modification of the consent de¬ 
cree, Allied States Assn, last week 
put a thorough review of the de¬ 
cree on the agenda of its Chicago 
convention which is skedded Oct. 
13-15. Three topics will be dis¬ 
cussed: 

(1) Divorcement. If the compa¬ 
nies were to be allowed to re-ac- 
quire theatres, what type of situa¬ 
tions would they be—regular or 
drive-ins? “In other words, what 
class of exhibitors will bear the 
brunt of this new competition?” 

Also, “would the film companies 
as an incidence of their ownership 
of theatres be able to revive the 
favoritism accorded the affiliates 
and the discriminations practiced 
against the independents before 
divorcement?” 

Is there any basis for supposing 
that, in getting back theatres, the 
companies would step up output, 
and how many dirve-ins would be 
in business today had it not been 
for the^ "standstill agreement” 
which prevented the majors and 
the affiliated circuits from expand¬ 
ing into the theatre field for so 
many years? 

(2) Block-Booking. Distinction 
must be made between compulsory 
and voluntary block booking, Al¬ 
lied held. Question is “To what 
extent, if at all, do the decrees 
prevent the voluntary block-book¬ 
ing' of pictures? Are exhibitors 
really in favor of compulsory 
block-booking and, again, would 
block-booking actually increase 
Hollywood’s output? 

(3) Production of Pictures by Di¬ 
vorced Circuits. Allied, along with 
others, petitioned the Department 
of Justice to permit this. The film 
companies, says Allied, - were in 
opposition “and their opposition 
blocked the attempt to get more 
pictures to relieve the serious 
shortage.” Allied still feels that 
any permission for the ex-affiliates 
to produce must be accompanied 
by adequate safeguards to “pre¬ 
vent reoccurrence of monopolistic 
practices.” 

Reviewing the various claims 
pro and con decree revision, the 
Allied statement said exhibitors 
had t<* determine the validity of 
the various arguments for them¬ 
selves. Allied’s own position is 
that the decree isn’t responsible 
for the dwindling product supply. 
It is convinced that “the solution 
of their (the exhibitors) most acute 
problems depends not upon annul¬ 
ling the decrees but in enforcing 
them.” 

While Theatre Owners of Ameri¬ 
ca is pressing for modification of 
the decree. Allied has accused the 
Department of Justice of laxity in 
enforcing it. 

RANK BUYS ADVENTURE 
YARN OF VANCOUVERITE 

Vancouver, Sept. 30. 

J. Arthur Rank organization in 
Britain has purchased film rights 
to “Afghan Adventure” - an auto¬ 
biographical novel published this 
month by Robert Hale Ltd. So re¬ 
veals the author, John Fox, long¬ 
time British army major now resi¬ 
dent in Vancouver. Book, his first, 
relates chase of aihns thieves and 
is attested as to veracity by Super¬ 
intendent Ellis of Scotland Yard. 
Film is expected, to start produc¬ 
tion early in 1959, 

“Afghan” sequel is being readied 
by publishers, and is also in pros¬ 
pect for Rank lensing, per Fox. 
Book retails at $3.75 in Canada. 


Fortima’s 'Saintly Gun’ 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Fortuna Films, an indie theatri¬ 
cal film company headed by Raoul 
and Betty Pagel, has bought “The 
Saintly Gun,” screenplay by Cur¬ 
tis Kenyon. 

Script is based on the teleplay, 
“The Other Side of the Coin,” on 
which Kenyon qollabbed with Jer¬ 
ry Sackheim, and which was seen 
on tv on “Theatre Guild.” 


Antitrust Chief To TOA Convention; 
Studios Woodshed-Shy Re Theatres 


By jl t RED hift 

Exhibitors, large numbers of 
them, appear determined to find 
a way to have the consent decree 
eased as a means of stimulating 
production in Hollywood. Theatre 
Owners of America, at its conven¬ 
tion in Miami next month, will 
make a concerted effort to hit on 
a. realistic approach that will al¬ 
low it to make that \ pitch either 
with the Dept, of Justice, or with 
the responsible courts. 

Victor R. Hanson, assistant at¬ 
torney general and head of the 
Justice Dept’s antitrust division, 
has agreed to appear at the con¬ 
vention to meet with TOA execs 
for a discussion of the overall situ¬ 
ation. ' He has indicated to TOA 
his eagerness to convey the gov¬ 
ernment view to the theatres, and 
in turn lend an ear to the exhi¬ 
bitor’s complaints. 

What TOA would like to see 
done is the easing of the decree 
to allow the ex-affiliated circuits to 
enter production with pre-emptive 
rights. National Theatres was 
turned down when it made that 
pitch to Washington. What TOA 


would like to see happen, too, is 
for the law to be eased, so that 
the producers can regain some of 
their theatres. This, runs to TOA 
argument, would recreate the con¬ 
ditions of yesteryear, i.e. the in¬ 
centive for the producers to turn 
out volume product. 

I The irony of the situation is 
that the producer-distributors, 
now well adjusted to divorcement 
(except for Loew’s), show gener¬ 
ally little enthusiasm for their re¬ 
turn to exhibition. If they were 
as successful as they were in the 
30’s and 40’s the reason partly lay 
in the very practices which event¬ 
ually led them into court. There 
is a good deal of doubt whether, 
under today’s conditions, and with 
suspicious lawyers forever looking 
over their shoulders, the major 
producer-distributors now would 
again make a go of their houses; 
or, for that matter, whether the 
conditions of the market are such 
that (1), they would want to 
saddle themselves with the over¬ 
head and (2), it would create the 
automatic need for more product. 

Said one of the majors’ sales 
toppers in N.Y. last week: “Let 


them lobby for changed condi¬ 
tions in the area of runs and clear¬ 
ances. That’s where we really 
get hit over the head. - There is 
no protection any more. Our pic¬ 
tures are going through too fast . 
It’s a case of now you see them 
and now you don’t, and you’ll 
never see ’em again either.” 

An exhibitor said the current 
conditions were unbearable “be¬ 
cause we are in a seller’s market. 
They can do anything they want 
to us that way.” It’s pointed out, 
however, that this condition isn’t 
precisely one which the majors 
would deplore, if indeed it exists 
to such an extent; nor are they 
likely to go for drastic measures 
designed . to deprive them of the 
advantage. 

' Irony of the situation at the 
moment is that TOA has no legiti¬ 
mate grounds on which to attack 
the issue in the courts, which 
have been appointed to stand 
guard over the decree. Further¬ 
more, the position of Allied, which 
has accused the Justice Dept, of 
laxity in its enforcement of the 
decree, isn’t making TOA’s ap¬ 
proach any easier. 


| Terry Moore’s Reasons 

| Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Terry 'Moore, offered the 
lead in “Beat Generation” at 
Metro, turned it down because 

(1) she didn’t like the script; 

(2) she felt the part was unim¬ 
portant; (3) she felt the sub¬ 
ject matter was too sordid. 

Picture deals with a femme 
who is raped and doesn’t know 
if the father of her unborn 
child is the rapist or her hus¬ 
band. Abortion is also part of 
the story. 

New Barjul Plots 
19 Expknteers 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

! Newly-formed Barjul Interna- 
j tional Pictures has blueprinted a 
slate of at least 19 features for 
filming and/or release through end 
of 1959. 

Headed by Emanuel Darling, 
Jerold Zukor and David Frank, all 
currently in N. Y. setting up play- 
dates for outfit’s first package^— 
“Attack of the Jungle Women” and 
“A Time to Kill”—Barjul already 
has bought six screenplays, op¬ 
tioned five others and is dicker¬ 
ing for two additional scripts. 

In addition to initial combo 
ready for release, company is now 
prepping a second and just closed 
deal with producer Willard Kirk- 
ham for another package, “Monster 
Assassin” and “Test Tube Woman.” 
Barjul’s own output will be budget¬ 
ed at $100,000 or under, and in 
deals made with indie company 
will guarantee return of 80% of 
negative costs within 24 months in 
exchange for participation and dis¬ 
tribution fee. 

In addition to producing and dis- 
tribbing, company will doctor pix 
! which have run into financial 
stress, completing necessary shoot¬ 
ing, editing, etc., in return for dis- 
trib fee, participation and first re- 
i Coup of its production costs. Firm 
also will guarantee payment of all 
outstanding bills within 24-month 
period on uncompleted films it 
readies for release. 

Company’s second package re¬ 
lease will be “Yambao,” $300,000 
film made in Mexico by Ruben Cal¬ 
deron, which Barjul has augment¬ 
ed and reedited,- and “Teenage 
Hell,” begun by Dale Ireland as 
“Bucks and Bruises” but which ran 
into union and coin trouble. Com- 
I bo goes out in November. 


Hya Lopert, producer-distribu¬ 
tor-exhibitor, back from Europe 
yesterday (Tues.) on the S.S. 
United States. 


Loeb of Wall St. 
Behind Wrather 
TJig Studio Buy’ 

John Loeb, of the Carl M. Loeb, 
Rhoades Co., Wall Street invest¬ 
ment house, is Jack Wrather’s 
backer in the oilman-showman’s 
expanding show biz acquisitions. 
Accent has been largelyjn televi- 
sion although the vidpiX operations 
are flexible for theatre exhibition 
purposes, when and if. 

Loeb-Wrather have their sights 
on a major Hollywood studio with 
an eye both to theatrical and tele¬ 
vision production. It would be one 
of the biggest acquisitions, money- 
wise, if it goes through, involving 
considerable Valuable realestate. 

Guinness Making Habit 
j Of Doobling in Brass; 
Writer-Star of ‘Noah’ 

Alec Guinness, who wrote the 
screen play (his first) for “The 
Horse’s Mouth” (based on Joyce 
Cary’s novel) and also stars in the 
film, is undertaking another dual 
assignment. He is currently 
working on' the screenplay 3 of 
“Noah” and is tailoring the title 
role 1 of the biblical character for 
his own talents. The film will be 
based on a play by Andre Obe. 

This was disclosed by Ronald 
Neame, who directed “Horse’s 
Mouth.” Neame, Guinness and 
producer John Bryan, who operate 
under the corporate title of 
Knightsbridge Films, will again 
join forces for the production of 
“Noah,” which Neame envisions 
as a spectacular that will cost 
about $2,500,000. 

The trio is hopeful of obtaining 
financial support for the new proj¬ 
ect from United Artists, which pro¬ 
vided the coin for the production 
of “The Horse’s Mouth.” One of 
the objects of Neame’s visit to 
New York last week was to open 
preliminary talks with UA. Pres¬ 
ent plans are to begin filming 
“Noah” in England in April. 

Also expected to be associated 
With “Noah” is Robert W. Dowling, 
president of City Divesting Co. 
Dowling owns the rights to the 
play, which was acquired when he 
was associated with the late. Alex¬ 
ander Korda. In addition, a Dowl- 
Ing-Guinness firm, DoWling-Lustre, 
hqlds Guinness’ contract, which 
[was obtained from Korda’s estate. 
Dowling accompanied Neame back 
J to. London over the weekend to 
jhold “talks with Guinness and 
Bryan on the production of 
rNoah.” 


Johnston in Moscow 

With Eric Johnston in Mos¬ 
cow two weeks, negotiating a 
film deal with the Russians, 
the only news received from 
his party is that they’re 
screening Soviet films to see 
which ones might be of inter¬ 
est to American audiences. 

The international tension 
over Quemoy and Matsu hasn’t 
made Johnston’s task any 
easier, film men figure. 


Japan’s Threat Of 
Import Shutout 

The Japanese government, seek¬ 
ing to force the American film 
companies into line, has notified 
them that, until they abide by the 
type of franchise agreement out¬ 
lined by Tokyo authorities, the is¬ 
suance of import licenses for next 
year will be suspended. 

The only distribs not affected 
by the edict are Universal and Co¬ 
lumbia, which already have the 
type of deals approved by the Ja¬ 
panese. United Artists also has 
been reported as falling into line. 

Main requirement under the 
franchise contracts demanded by 
the Japanese is that print and 
other costs be charged to New 
York rather than to the local sub¬ 
sidiary. In other words, more 
charges would be levelled against 
remittable coin. 

The companies so far have not 
decided what to do, though it ap¬ 
pears inevitable that, in the long 
run, they will comply. Irving 
Maas, MPEA rep in the Far East, 
has been instructed to hold fur¬ 
ther talks with the Japanese gov¬ 
ernment on the' question. Under 
the new film law, the Japanese 
also have said they will not issue 
any licenses after 1960 to any com- 
pany which does not actually main- 
I tain a distribution organization in 
Japan. 

Earlier this year 20tb-Fox had a 
man—-Roy Kimmerle—in Tokyo, 
huddling with the Japanese on a 
new franchise deal. When he re¬ 
turned, 20th submitted such a deal 
to Tokyo, but was turned down, 
the argument being that it didn’t 
go far enough. 


Warwick Want* Palance 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Jack Palance is being paged to 
star in “African Bush Adventure,” 
Warwick Productions film ‘due to 
roll after the first of the year in 
Africa. 

Palance is the star of Warwick’s 
unreleased “The Man Inside,” shot 
last spring in England, France and 
Italy. 



It’s not so tough to make a mil¬ 
lion dollars in show business; just 
make a picture like “The Vikings.” 
And let it be called a “Norse 
Opera" in the New York Times)— 
it still means a mint for the film- 
aker, who happens to be Kirk 
Douglas, also one of the stars. 

Douglas’ deal with financier-ds- 
tributor United Artists called for 
no salary, but 60% of the profits. 

‘“Vikings” was brought in at a 
cost of $3,500,000 which, fretfully 
enough, was $1,000,000 over the 
originally-blueprinted budget. The 
excess might have been more ex¬ 
cept that bankrolling UA execs in¬ 
sisted on some rewriting that re¬ 
sulted in the elimination of some 
costly location shooting. 

Foresee $7-Mil Domestic 

The domestic (United States and 
Canadian) rental total is now fig¬ 
ured at $7,000,000. This means 
(considering, the cost of distribu¬ 
tion, prints, advertising, etc.) that 
the break-even point already is 
reached and the foreign market 
net is all profit. 

The overseas take is indicated 
at another $7,000,000. Subtract 
from this an approximate 40% as 
. distribution fee, or $2,800,000, plus 
another $500,000 for the “sell” pro¬ 
motion. This leaves a net profit of 
$3,700,000. Douglas’ cut is $2,200.- 
000. The tax bite doubtless will be 
severe but there are certain capi¬ 
tal gains advantages in being “in¬ 
corporated,” which is for sure. 

If he wasn’t one before, actor 
Douglas is now a millionaire. 

"Vikings” meanwhile provides 
some mightful estimates of where 
the money goes for a picture of 
this type. For example (remember, 
estimates): Tony Curtis, $150,000; 
Janel Leigh, $60,000; Ernest Borg- 
nine, $60,000; others in the cast 
combined, $150,000; story property, 
$30,000; screenplay, $40,000: pro¬ 
ducer (Jerry Bresler), $40,000; 
director (Richard Fleischer), 
$75,000; construction of replicas of 
three Viking ships, $200,000: con¬ 
struction of Vikings village, 
$ 100 , 000 . 

These were the major items at 
the outset. The balance, which 
brings the total lip to $3,500,000, 
came In various ways, including: 
Cameraman (Jack Cardiff) and 
crew, all other technicians, studio 
rental in Munich, costumes, trans¬ 
portation and "care and feeding” of 
personnel (an unusually big item 
in view of the number of persons 
employed from the States. England 
and Germany and quartered on the 
various location sites, such as the 
Norwegian fjords), editing, scor¬ 
ing, processing, etc.). 


‘Glory* On The Side 
Kirk Douglas found some “at 
liberty” time in the course of mak¬ 
ing “The Vikings” and kept him¬ 
self beaucoup capital gains-fully 
employed. 

. Between takes of “Vikings” the 
producer-star turned out “Paths of 
Glory” and this brought him a pay¬ 
off of $300,000. 

It’s understood his deal with 
Hecht-Hill-Lancaster anent one of 
the starring roles in “Devil’s Dis¬ 
ciple” provides him with a flat 
$350,000. 


DISNEY CONCEIVING FIVE 
IN BIG-MONEY RANGE 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Distribution plans for five top- 
budget features, biggest, program 
of Walt Disney product in indie’s 
history, are being worked out in 
series of meetings starting here 
! yesterday by Buena Vista, releas¬ 
ing arm of company. 

BV prexy Leo F. Samuels 
brought his homeoffice exec staff 
from N. Y. to huddle with Disney 
prexy Roy Disney and other studio 
toppers on films to be released, 
through next summer. Lineup in¬ 
cludes “Sleeping Beauty,” “$6,- 
000,000 Technirama cartoon; “Ton¬ 
ka,” “Darby O’Gill and the Little 
People,” “The Shaggy Dog" and 
“Third Man on the Mountain.** 



fissnEf? 


4 PICTURBS 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


70 Permits, Any OAefsPonuses, 
Foreseen as Future French Position 


There appears a strong possibil¬ 
ity that, in. the next Franco-Ameri¬ 
can film accord, the French will re¬ 
fuse to issue more than 70 import 
licenses. The remainder will be 
handed out in the form of “bonus” 
permits, handed to American com¬ 
panies which have performed cer¬ 
tain services for the French film 
industry, and with no number 
specified. 

This word from Paris last week 
credits Jacques Flaud, head of the 
Centre National de la Cinematog¬ 
raphy, as irked by current Ameri¬ 
can maneuvres re the license divi¬ 
sion. Motion Picture Export Assn, 
is trying to change FlandPs mind re 
the distribution of 40 licenses. 

Under the last accord, it was 
agreed that for the two years end¬ 
ing in June, 1959, the annual total 
of licenses handed to the majors 
should be 110. However, for the 
second year, Flaud reserved to 
himself the right to allocate 40 of 
the 110 licenses on the basis of who 
had done what for the French 
films. To this MPEA reluctantly 
agreed. It Is now trying hard to 
get Flaud to abandon the plan. 

To avoid a repetition, Flaud re¬ 
portedly is planning to commit 
himself to 70 permits only for 
1959-60. He has the additional ar¬ 
gument that neither Republic nor 
RKO are any longer effectively in 
distribution in France. Republic is 
out altogether, and RKO, which is 
not producing, is released by the 
Rank Organisation. In effect, the 
proposed French arrangement 
would leave in the cold only a 
couple of the majors—like Univer¬ 
sal and Paramount—who aren’t ac¬ 
tive in production abroad. 

On the other hand, it’s question¬ 
able that Flaud would specify how 
many bonus permits he’d be will¬ 
ing to hand out under such a deal. 
Flaud has felt for some time that 
too many American films are being 
flooded into Europe, and he' has 
been one of the vocal advocates of 
a European Common Market for 
films, which would automatically 
reduce the. Influx of Hollywood 
product. MPEA, so far, has taken 
the position that 110 permits is the 
minimum required for its member 
companies to keep their organiza¬ 
tions operating in France. Realiza¬ 
tion of the Flaud plan could mean 
a push in the direction of consoli¬ 
dation, which some feel is inevi¬ 
table in Europe anyway. 


National Broods 
On Stageshows 


I Standouts: 1, 2, 3 

[ Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Jerry Wald Productions is 
entering the fields of paper¬ 
back books, disks and sheet 
music via formation of three 
subsidiaries. 

Companies, named Standout 
~ Books, Standout Records, 
Standout Music, will function 
in association with any films 
Wald might produce on solely 
indie basis. 


Skeptic Brandt 
Now Sees Par As 


Theatre-A 



Harry Brandt states he’s con¬ 
vinced that Paramount is going 
ahead with Its theatrical produc¬ 
tion at «' strong pace. And he adds 
an apology to the film company. 

The New York circuit owner ac¬ 
knowledged* that he suspected Par 
was on the verge of sluffing off the 
theatrical business, so interpret¬ 
ing its sale of the library to tele¬ 
vision and its apparent segue into ' 
home toll. (Brandt was not alone; 
many others in the industry had 
thoughts anent the possibility of 
Par’s abandonment of theatre 
service.) 

But Brandt now admits, having 
[been given chapter and verse on 
Par’s for-theatres production, that 
| this outfit is staying in the theatri¬ 
cal field—more so than ever. And 
as a result, he adds, he’s encour¬ 
aged to invest more in updating 
- his theatres and promoting the pic¬ 
tures he hooks. 

This is an aside to the 100 world¬ 
wide meetings which Par has 
(Continued on page 7) 


Europe to N, Y. 

Ludwig Bemelmans 
Josephine Brown 
Anthony Creighton 
Anthony Franciosa . 
Shari Lewis 
Ilya Lopert 
Theodore Mann * 

Albert Morini 
John Osborne 
Jose Quintero 
WiH’am St C. Low 
Jeremy Tarcher 
Renata Tebaldi 
Benjamin Thau 
John Williams 
Shelley Winters 


New York to Europe 

Barry Sisters 
Betty Bartley 
Larry BJyden 
Lonny Chapman 
Dan Dailey 
Len Doyle 
Andre Eglevsky 
Duke Ellington 
Rita Gam 
Roland Gammon 
Billy M. Greene 
Melissa Hayden 
Will Kuluva 
Paula Laurence 
Leon Leonidoff 
George Mathews 
Myron McCormick 
Scott McKay 
Irene Miller 
Arnold Moss 
Hildy Parks 
Ann Sheridan 
Howard Smith 
Susan Strasberg 
"William L.’ Taub 
Kay Thompson 
Bill Tqdman 
Franchot Tone 
Patricia Wilde 

• L. A. to N. Y. 

Barney Balaban 
William Bendix 
Raymond Burr 
Richard Carlson 
Hans Conreid 
Saul David 
Laraine Day 
Rusty Draper 
Oscar Dystel 
Philip Gerard 
Freeman Gosden 
Arthur Gregory 
Dennis Hopper 
Ross Hunter 
Arthur Israel 
Arthur Pi Jacobs 
Frankie Laine 
Martin Leeds 
Jack Linkletter 
John Mitchell 
Ken Murray 
John Raitt 
Hubbell Robinson Jr. 

Dore Schary 
Robert Schwartz 
David O. Selznick 
Spyros P. Skouras 
Walter Wanger 
Lawrence Weingarten 
Betty White 
Randy Wp 0 d 

New York to L. A. 

William Boyd 
Grace Bradley 
Jack Davies 
Derek Deglin 
Anne Fulchino 
Derek Glynne 
Gil Golden 
Abby Mann 
George B.. Marek 
Don McGannon 
Dick Pack 
Jerry Pickman 
Harold Sachson 
Mrs. Frankie Spitz . 

Christina Underwood 
George Weltner 
Virginia Wicks 


Hollywood, Sept 30. 

John B. Bertero, new president 
of National Theatres, also will con¬ 
tinue “for foreseeable future” his 
former duties as president of Fox 
West, Coast Theatres, National’s 
aubsid. New title is assumed to¬ 
morrow (Wed.). 

Under new administration, goal 
Is to become “a growth organiza¬ 
tion.” This can be accomplished, 
Bertero said, only by program of 
diversification in allied fields en¬ 
tertainment upon which; chain al¬ 
ready embarked. National is ex¬ 
ploring possibility of augmenting, 
film exhibition with stage shows, 
plans calling for top names to tour 
key houses. 

For “growth,” It’s essential for 
National to add to its earnings by 
going into television, which has al¬ 
ready started via ' acquisition of 
WDAF (AM-TV) of Kansas City 
and proposed acquisition of Na¬ 
tional Television Associates. Other 
possible buys are pending accord¬ 
ing to Charles L. Glett, v.p. hi 
charge of tv operations. 

Spencer Leve, new v.p. of thea¬ 
tre operations reports deal closed 
with Warner Bros, to open “Aunt¬ 
ie Marne” at Chinese Theatre, 
Hollywood, around Christmas. 

It will replace “Windjammer,” 
which in nine situations domestic 
and foreign, has to date grossed 
$2,500,000. 


Anthony Franciosa- and wife 
Shelley Winters came In on the 
United States yesterday (Tues.l. 
Had been in Rome where the actor 
starred with Ava Gardner in 
“Naked Maja,” Titanus film. 


National Boxoffice Survey 

Biz Still Uneven; ‘Cat 9 Again .Champ, 'Yankees 9 2d, 
'Pacific 9 3d,.'Defiant 9 4th, 'Gigi 9 5th; 


Business at first-runs is holding 
uneven in current session around 
country. While the fist four big¬ 
gest pictures will reap more than 
$1,000,000 total gross, showing dip 
sharply after that; which means ex¬ 
hibitors are having their usual pre- 
October b.o. woes this stanza. 
Fresh product, too, is not measur¬ 
ing up well for the most part 
Again “Cat on Hot Tin Roof* 
.(M-G) is finishing in first spot, a 
position it has held for a whole 
month. “Damn Yankees” (WB), 
out for the most part. 

Again “Cat on Hot Tin Roof’ 
(M-G) is finishing in first spot, a 
position it has held for a whole 
month. “Damn Yankees” (WB), 
out for first time to any extent this 
; week, is a strong second-place win¬ 
ner and pressing "Cat” for top 
laurels. 

“South Pacific” (20th) Is capture 
lng third money while “Defiant 
Ones” (UA) moves Up to fourth 
place by dint of five key city dates. 1 ' 
“Gigi” (M-G), high’ on the list re¬ 
cently, is finishing fifth. “Me and 
Colonel” (Col), fourth last found, 
is winding up sixth. 

“Big Country*' (UA), which was 
sixth a week ago, is taking seventh 
spot “Around World in 80 Days’ 
(UA) is capturing eighth place. 
“Windjammer” (NT) is winding up 
In ninth position. • 
marry Black and Tiger” (20th), 
a newie. Is finishing 10th despite 
considerable coin racked up oh 


borne 15 playdates.in keys covered 
by Variety. “Search For Para¬ 
dise” (Cinerama) fs taking ‘ 11th 
place while “La Parisienne” (UA) 
rounds out the Top 12 list 
“Matchmaker” (Par), “Rgw Wind 
in Eden” (U) and “Reluctant De¬ 
butante” (M-G) are the runner-up 
films in that order. 

“Wind Across Everglades” (WB) 
Is somewhat disappointing bn its 
three dates this stanza. “Camp on 
Blood Island” (Col), also new, looks 
good in two -spots. 

“South Seas Adventure” (Cine¬ 
rama) landed a great take on open¬ 
ing’ week in Chi. Pic continues 
okay in N.Y. on longrun. “Never 
Love Stranger” (AA), average ip 
K.C., Js rated smash In Detroit 
“Katfiy-O” (U) looms okay in St. 
Louis. 

"Dunkirk” (M-G), fairly new, 
shapes mild to dull currently. 
“God Created Woman” (Kings), 
good in Washington, looks nice in 
XjC. : “Night Heaven Fell,” also 
from Kingsley, is rated torrid in 
Boston, sock in .Denver, okay in 
LA. and good in Philly. - 

“Indtscreef’ (WB), long high bn 
the list, is big in Louisville, dandy 
in L.A. and good in Toronto. 

“Hunters” (20th) shapes good in 
Toronto, ^'Bridge ofi River Kwai” 
(Col) looms nice ih N.Y. and Wash¬ 
ington. 

: (Complete' Boxoffice Report* 
bn Pages. 8-9) 


;; New York Sound Track | 

♦ ♦♦»+♦++»+♦♦+♦♦ M »+ t 44++» » +4 + 44»+4++»444»+ + + 4+ V 4.+ 

Irony: Ida Lupino at the conclusion of the 1944 Warner Bros, film, 
“li Our Time,” shown -on tv last week: “Warsaw has become a sym¬ 
bol of the world we are trying to achieve.” . . . Burt Obrents of the 
Columbia Pictures international dept recently went to Iceland to 
scout a new deal for the Col product. 

Harold Lloyd plans eventually to remake “The Freshman,” one of 
his all-time classics which he did as a silent in the ’20s. This was dis-. 
closed when comedian protested use of title by J. Arthur Rank. British 
company notified Lloyd last week that he had dropped tag from a 
projected film property, and instead would use “Bachelor of Hearts.”- 

“Roots of Heaven” will have an intermission at its Palace Theatre, 
N.Y., roadshow . . . Johnston office threw a blacktie party for the 
British film pact negotiators in Washington yesterday (Tues.) . . . 
Thanks to “Peyton Place,” 20th-Fdx's distribution setup will show a 
profit this year for the first time in many a year . . . Joseph Materaali, 
head of the French Film Office in Manhattan, expects to stay on to 
the end of 1959 . . . MPEA’s India rep, Charles Egan, flew to Burma 
. . . Worth noting: The sexy 1 “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” got an A-M 
rating from the Roman Catholic Legion of Decency. Of course,, the 
two principals are married . . . Charles E. McCarthy, “publicist” (what¬ 
ever that implies) for the non-busy Council of Motion Picture Organ¬ 
izations, apparently too busy to return, info calls from the Press. Such 
as what? . . . Alex Harrison, 2Qth's sales chief, moved to the city and 
signed a Ave-year lease on an apartment, at 79th and Madison. So that 
20th Coast ihovfr dpe$n*t-.sbem to be immediately in the offing. 

Frankie (Mrs. Leo) Spits, back from three months abroad where 
she wafc part-of a UN Cultural Mission to Brussels (but. couldn’t ac¬ 
cept an invite to Moscow), rushing to'the Coast because of the death 
of her housekeeper;* id years with the household . . ~ Spyros Skouras 
hosting an Amusement Industry for Rockefeller rally r along with Gus 
Eyssell and Ned Depiaet, at the Metropolitan Club tomorrow (ThursJ. 

Gladys Cooper has bowed out of Warner Bros.’ ‘The Miracle” due 
to delayed start of role .. . Rufe Davis into Alfred Hitckeoek’s “North 
By Northwest” at Metro . . . 'Columbia Pictures is overtiming Fred 
Zinnemann to direct “Andersonville,” -following decision .of George 
Sidney to only product. 

Not. within.memory have so many of the Variety homeoffice edi¬ 
torial staff wanted-to see—and havfe seen—a picture with as much 
avidity as-is currently being manifested- with “Cat On The Hot Tin 
Roof,” colloquially called ‘The Hot Cat” The legit bunch knows a 
show’s a hit when “pals” start to bother them for “house seats,” but 
it’s a rarity in the picture dept. 

Jacques Salberg, Warper Bros, director of film sales in France and 
North Africa, has resigned. He’s succeeded by Bernard Kopel, who has 
been with WB here since 1932 . . . Free chest X-rays for members of 
the film b£* are being made available at the Hotel Astor, N.Y., till 
Friday (2), -courtesy of the Will Rogers Hospital 

Screenbill, the forthcoming weekly for theatre distribution to fans, 
is being bandied in N.Y. by Russell Birdwell Associates . . . but the 
Bird flew in 1947 when his . Manhattan/shop was acquired by W. Ware 
Lynch and C. V* Armstrong, the gents concerned with the new peri¬ 
odical ... 

Clem Perry, v.p. and general manager of New York’s Rugoff & Beck¬ 
er Theatres, abroad on first lap of a three-week European trip to view 
art films. 

Miranda Productions Inc. has been authorized to conduct a motion 
picture films business in New York, with capital stock of 200 shares, 
no par valuel Wcinrlb & Weinrfb were filing attorneys at Albany . . . . 
Iberia International Films Inc. has been empowered to carry on a 
motion picture and selling business., in New York, with capital stock 
of 200 shares, no par value, and 100 shares $100 par value. Directors 
are: David A. Alberstadt of Philadelphia; Isadora H. Sohweidel and 
David Abennan of New York yia attorney Paul Miller; also newly reg¬ 
istered: Dun ^Productions Ike. of Hewlett Bay Park, Nassau .County, 
N.Y. through Manhattan attorneys Zelkin & Cohen. 

Hugo Fregonese bought “Nina and the Tramp,” original screen¬ 
play by Spanish author ..Carlo#. Blanco, for indie production in Spain 
next April.., Tyrone PoVtfi next after curaent “Solomon and Sheba” 
will head bis own Copa Productions’ untitled World War II yarn, in¬ 
volving a> school for assassins, to be lensed in Sweden .. . Buddy Breg¬ 
ma#., will compose theme'song for Jerry Wald’s “Winesburg, Ohio” 

. . William F.'Broidy acquired pair of Alonzo Been Coie originals, 

“The Experiment of Dr. Zahn” and ‘The Gypsy’s Hand,” to be pro¬ 
duced back'to back as horror package . . . Anthony Perkins cast by 
Stanley Kramer as costar in “On the Beach” joining Gregory Peck, 
Ava,Gardner, and Fred Astaire . 

“The Return of Jack the Ripper** will follow “Jail Break” for Milner 
Bros. Co-production deal'with British Charles Deane for pair of Guy 
Madison starrers, “Sea Fury’-* and “Brigand’s Gold,” called off by 
Helen Ainsworth due to press -of new Madison telepix series at Hal 
Roach ... 

By coincidence, Warner Bros, currently is filming Max Reialuqrdt’* . 
“The Miracle^” which it bought back in 1927, coincidentally with tho 
upcoming-Houghton Mifflin publication of Lady Diana Cooper’s mem¬ 
oirs* “The Rainbow Comes and Goes.” Book has already been pub¬ 
lished in England, has been serialized in part ih -Ladies Home Jour¬ 
nal. Lady Cooper played the Virgin -in the original legit production 
in the mid-192Qs. . 

- Film fan mags are pleasantly surprised at the solid sales despite 
the alleged downbeat of the picture business. Their analysis is that, 
whether on theatre or home-screen, pix are still beaueoup popular. 


'HERCULES',, HITS WEST COAST! 


Joe Levine of .Boston Now Favors 
Premieres There' 

Boston, Sept,-30. 

Joseph E. Levine, prexy Embas¬ 
sy Pictures Corp., flew to Holly¬ 
wood Thursday (25) • to set the 
American premiere of his new 
Italian film* acquisition, ‘‘Her¬ 
cules.” Color spectacle in ana : 
morphiscope With all-English dia¬ 
logue, marks the first film the Bos¬ 
ton film distrib and importer has 
preemed on the w«st coast All his 
other, big exploitation- films,-*“At- 
tila,” “Godzilla,” ‘Wiretappers” 
were’ preemed. in the east.' 

Levine Will remain In* Hollywood 
for a week to set arrangements and 
planx-his biggest exploitation cam¬ 
paign for* “Hercules.” He contem¬ 
plates west toast proems 'on: Ms 
films frora T here •* - 


Heard on Both Coasts: 
Realtor Zeckendorf May 
Acquire Republic's Labs 

Rumored (but not confirmed)" in 
. Coast and New York (Wall Street)' 
circles is a possible buyout by' 
realtor - hotel operator William 
Zeckendorf of Republic’s labora¬ 
tories both in the east and west. 

Rep’s Consolidated Film Lab¬ 
oratories represents the film com¬ 
pany’s _ important money-making 
enterprises. It was hinted that Rep. 
president Herbert J. .Yates.is to bo 
in -New York. from- his Coast base • 
this week to consider the deaL 
5 Further noted that Zeckendorf 
has an important interest, in Pathe' 
Labs and, thus, is no stranger to 
the. field. Zeckendorf bought out 
the late Robert H. Young’S stofck in 
Chesapeake Industries, Which-is k- 
holding company: whose prbpeftfe#'- 
include “Pathe. * * " 




Wednesday, October 1, 19,58 

— - ■■ . . . ■ j= r 


PfadEff 


PICTURES S T 


TALENT & BRAINS VS ‘MERE $’ 




'Overheard’ by Reporter Furlong 

The following are quotes from a story written by Chicago Daily 
News sportswriter BUI Furlong on the supposedly secret major 
league meeting in Chicago, He listened in on the discussions via 
an airvent from an adjoining room. '■ 

Commissioner Ford Frick related to the owners that he had 
been presented with a $150,000 bill by Robert Coyne, special 
counsel for COMPO, for getting the admissions' tax reduced, to 
10%. “The Commissioner feels that we have neither a legal nor 
a moral obligation to pay him,” Frick said, adding that Coyne had 
approached him some years back offering to lobby for a tax cut. 
However, Frick stressed that he had never hired Coyne for that 
work. 

“He did a helluva job for us” lobbying for the biU that would 
give baseball immunity from the antitrust laws, Frick said, “and 
there is no question he did a good job on the tax thing. However, 
I don’t like him coming and saying he was representing us when 
he wasn’t.” * 

Coyne has denied ever having presented Frick with a bill for get¬ 
ting the tax reduced. He hid been tinder specific direction from the 
COMPO board to “go it alone’.’ for the film biz in the tax fight. 
However, Coyne makes no bones about having done work for Frick 
in Washington. 


Coyne Lobbied for Baseball 
Says COMPO Leaders Knew; 
Denies Rendering Frick a Bill 


Sexsational Come-Ons in Ad Copy 
Recognized as a Gotta-Be-Tackled 

Problem; MPAA May Go Into Huddle 

----- --:-:-♦> 


Robert W. Coyne, special coun¬ 
sel for the Council of Motion Pic¬ 
ture Organization, acknowledged 
last week that he had lobbied for 
the major league baseball clubs 
in Washington, but denied that he 
had submitted to Commissioner 
Ford Frick a bill for his services. 

He said that his association with 
Frick was known to the COMPO 
governing committee and “recog¬ 
nized as not inconsistent with my 
responsibilities to COMPO,” 

Coyne’s tie to Frick first came 
to light in an article written by 
BUI Furlong in the Chicago Daily 
News in which he disclosed that 
the' Major League owners had 
huddled with Frick on the ques¬ 
tion of a $150,000 bUl submitted 
by Coyne for his services in get¬ 
ting the admissions tax reduced. 
Frick and the owners, according 
to Furlong, decided they had no 
obligation to pay Coyne. 

Furlong got his story, by hiding 
out in a room in a Chicago hotel i 
The baseball execs were meeting I 
next door and Furlong eavesdrop- i 
ded on their powwow. J 

Coyne said he had represented 
Frick in Congress “during the 
past three to four months.” In 
his formal statement he said he 
had represented^ him “in his pro¬ 
gram with the recent Congress.” 

In Furlong’s story one of the 
owners was quoted as saying that 
it’s be embarrassing were it to be i 
established that baseball was pay-| 
ing a percentage to a lobbyist who ; 
had succeeded in getting the ad¬ 
missions tax reduced. Coyne was 
said to have told Frick that the 
$150,000 represented 10% of the 
amount baseball saved by-the re¬ 
duction of the admissions tax to 
10% from the former 20%.' 

Coyne' didn’t explain • why he 
wopld be representing Frick in 
Congress without payment. Nor 
was there,-an explanation of Coy¬ 
ne’s actions in the light of a re¬ 
corded decision by the film biz 
that it would push its own tax 
fight in the Congress without join¬ 
ing hands -with other -Interested 
parties. Taking Coyne’s statement 
at face, the entire discussion of 
the basebaU owners on the subject 
of‘Coyne’s bill would Seem to 
have been fabricated by Furlong. 
The alleged dialog was reproduced 
In ..some detail in a recent issue 
of - Sports Illustrated (Luce). 

Though the Furlong yarn caus¬ 
ed some raised eyebrows in Indus¬ 
try quarters, there was virtually 
no’ comment on it. Sam Pinanski 
of .the CQMPO triumvirate, reach¬ 
ed. at his Boston headquarters, 
said he knew. nothing ’Whatever 
about the whole thing; which is in 
apparent Contradiction to Coyne’s 
statement that COMPO knew— 
and-approved of—his personal ac¬ 
tivities on- behalf of basebalL * * 

<When the .Coyne yam first 
crackedin the daily. press, both 
baseball and film industries, sent 
out * wave ..of - unmistakable, em¬ 
barrassment which would show on 


a seismograph. But it was a re¬ 
markably 'silent earthquake which 
jarred telephone communications 
so that executives became lost to 
contact. After some days of no 
breath , some tradesters were tran- 
quilized back into nominal, if not 
revealing, communication. It is 
not clearly known whether the 
baseball industry’s immunity to 
antitrust regulation ( under, a spe¬ 
cial privilege) was a factor in the 
wall of silence .— Ed.) 

(It’s rumored that Washing¬ 
ton-wise Coyne may be joining 
the liquor people, who’ve 
. been having tax agonies of 
their own, especially on ware¬ 
house . bonding. He couldn\ 
be reached for comment yes¬ 
terday (Tues.). 


John Huston 
Argues for Not 
Staying at Home 

Location shooting, though ex¬ 
pensive and fraught with danger, 
nevertheless infuses picture-mak¬ 
ing with the kind of excitement 
that it needs, director John Hus¬ 
ton declared in Manhattan last 
week. “For some of us, the ele¬ 
ment of risk is an incentive. There 
is a kind of gamble that is attrac- 
! tive,” he added. ' 

- Huston was~replying to a ques¬ 
tion on whether treks like the one 
he and Darryl F. Zanuck took to 
Equatorial French Africa to shoot 
“Roots of - Heaven” were really 
worth it in terms of dramatic and 
visual values achieved. The entire 
company got sick in the - extreme 
heat and a very large, budget was 
required to-move actors and crew 
into the inaccessible region. 

Earlier,. Zanuck had said that, 
while he was satisfied with the 
results, he “wouldn’t do it again.” 

“I am not sure we are capable 
of doing things ‘the easy way any 
more,” said Huston. “That’s par¬ 
ticularly true when working in a 
studio and with a bad script l 
know there are a lot of directors 
who’d much rather work inside, 
under controlled conditions. As for*| 
myself, I’d be one of .the world’s 
worst directors. I’d go very stale 
working In a studio all the time.” 

While the need for location 
shooting is generally recognized in 
the widescreen era, when studio- 
built sets tend to look phoney on 
the screen, some in the Industry 
have been wondering out ’loud 
whether the economics of produc¬ 
tion abroad always add up logi¬ 
cally. Question is being, asked 
whether the resultant realism, so 
costly to achieve, pays off propor- 
(Contlnued on page 71) • 



Wealthy independent producers 
are angling.to become wealthier by 
way of becoming “independent” in 
the full sense. This means they 
want to go it alone jn the way of 
financing their own pictures and by 
way of so doing reap all the profits 
—if any. 

Case In point, it’s reported, is 
Sam Spiegel, whose “Bridge on the 
River Kwai” Obviously will be one 
of the biggest grossers of the past 
year. It’s now figured at $12,000,- 
000 and the profit, while hard to 
guess at this time, ought to be sub¬ 
stantial. Columbia, which financed 
the production and took distribu¬ 
tion rights, is in on the profits 
split. 

Spiegel’s feeling reportedly is 
that, had he bankrolled the picture 
himself, he could have grabbed all 
the film’s earnings and, further, 
worked out a better releasing deal. 
Distributors, upon financing an in¬ 
die picture, usually take 25% to 
30% of the gross as releasing fee 
plus, perhaps, 50% _of the net rev¬ 
enue return. 

Stirring the indies particularly 
is the deal which Samuel Goldwyn 
worked'out for the Col handling of 
his “Porgy and Bess.” Producer 
staked his own money for the entry 
—as he has done with all his past 
productions—and the only payoff 
to Col is the distributor charge. 

According to Coast sources, some 
indies have come to believe that 
Goldwyn. is paying only 15% of 
the 'gross for the Columbia dis¬ 
tribution, with no Col participation 
in the profits. They’re motivated by 
this assumption-regardless of its 
accuracy; neither Goldwyn nor Co¬ 
lumbia have stated the agreed 
terms but the charge actually is 
18% with Col having no partner¬ 
ship in the profits. 

Point is made on the distribution 
side that the financier takes all the 
capital risks. It breaks down to 
the situation whereby the film com¬ 
pany, having provided the invest¬ 
ment money, is entitled to a par¬ 
ticipation in the ownership if the 
film comes out well financially, 
considering that the company alone 
sustains the losses if the film is a 
fiscal lemon. 

But there’s more to .it, according 
to the indie side. The financing is 
done for the most part on a cross- 
collateralization basis. This meins 
a group of productions is financed 
i collectively, rather than any one 
picture individually. Thus, if a 
producer such as Spiegel makes 
$500,000 on his first picture and 
loses the same amount origins sec¬ 
ond, the profit from the first can be 
charged against the loss of the 
second. 

Indies say this means a risk fac-' 
tor for them, too. For aren’t they 
gambling with that Initial $500,000 
[profit? Also, they’re ante-ing their 
time and talent. 

Number of producers in a posi¬ 
tion. and willing, to provide their 
own financing is limited. Not every¬ 
body’s a Goldwyn, But there have 
been some who have built up pic 
negative equities in recent years 
which are adequate enought to ob¬ 
tain bank money on their own. And 
they (Spiegel included) are said to 
be thinking in these- terms. 

| Excluded at-this tftne are Stan¬ 
ley Kramer, who has. a six-picture 
contract with United Artists, and 
Hecht-Hill-Lancaster. Latter, has. a 
tieup With UA which provides the 
company with only 25% of the 
profits and this is said to be agree¬ 
able to both sides. 


Grainger's Burma Okay 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 

Edmund Grainger will lens his 
next Metro production, ■‘Never So l 
Few,” in Burma, following Burm¬ 
ese governmental sanction of proj¬ 
ect. 

Producer, currently on “Green 
Mansions,” ' heads for Far East 
early in year , to scout locations 
for Tom Chamales’ novel, .now. 
being scripted by Millard Kauf¬ 
man. j 


Valentino Nephew Sues 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Jean Valentino, nephew of the 
late Rudolph Valentino, has asked 
$35,000 damages in a Superior 
Court suit against Disneyland Inc.; 
for unauthorized use of silent film, 
"The Eagle,” starring Valenttoo 
and Vilma Banky. 

He asserts pic, shown at Disney¬ 
land cinema theatre., Oldie House, 
violated his rights -as -legatee of 
star. 


Anglo-Yank Pact 



As Waltzing 


Washington, Sept. 30. 

The Anglo-American film agree¬ 
ment was extended today (Tues.) 
for another year without change. 
New pact runs to Sept. 26, 1959. 
As last year, it was a pleasant 
negotiation. 

Under the agreement, the Amer¬ 
icans retain the right to uncondi¬ 
tionally remit $17,000,000 annual¬ 
ly. The pact includes several 
bonus provisions. As a result, the 
U.S. outfits have virtually no 
frozen balances in Britain. 

Negotiating for the British 5 were 
Sir David Eccles, president of the 
Board of Trade, and Sir Frank Lee, 
Permanent Under-Secretary of the 
BOT. Also Kenneth Huggins, com¬ 
mercial counsellor at tlje British 
Embassy. Sitting on the U.S. side 
of the table were Ralph Hetzel, 
exec v.p. of the Motion Picture 
Export Assn., and Griffith John¬ 
son, v.p. 

Neither Eric Johnston (who is in 
Moscow) nor Ellis Arnall, prez of 
the Society of Independent Motion. 
Picture Producers, attended. 


POWER ROLL&'SHEBA/ 
HIS LEGIT PLANS HAZY 

Madrid, Sept. 23. 

Looking biblical in a three-cor¬ 
nered beard, Tyrone Power has ar¬ 
rived here for his filming start; 
in “Solomon and Sheba” opposite 
Gina Lollobrigida. Old Testament 
saga in Technirama, financed and, 
to be released by United Artists, is 
fcie actor’s first- in a. series of five 
films abroad. 

Power and his Copa Productions 
.partner-producer. Ted Richmond 
are associated with Edward Small 
in the upcoming religioso spec¬ 
tacle. As currently credited, “She? 
ba” will be an Edward Small pres¬ 
entation-produced by Ted Rich¬ 
mond. • 

Actor failed to confirm Stateside 
reports- of his Broadway appear¬ 
ance next spring with Ingrid Berg¬ 
man . in “Anna . Karenina.” Im¬ 
pressed with the Moscow Art The¬ 
atre’s dramatization of the Tol¬ 
stoi novel and admitting he will 
continue tp devote • a semi-annual; 
portion of his time to stage thes- 
ping, Power unbearded a “no defi¬ 
nite commitment yet!” He said he 
presumed the “Karenina” an¬ 
nouncement was a Gregory Ratoff 
trial balloon. (Ratoff is slated 
to stage the venture.) 

Power said his next film, ten¬ 
tatively titled “One Against To¬ 
morrow,” would be done entirely in. 
Stockholm beginning February, 
possibly with Lee Thomson (“Ice 
Cold in Alex”) as’ director and a 
Swedish actress in one of the two 
femme roles. . ] 


Complaints about film advertis¬ 
ing from all over the country have 
reached such a pitch that the Mo¬ 
tion Picture Assn, of America is 
planning to call a special meeting 
of ad-pub heads in the near future 
to discuss the situation. 

What worries MPAA is that 
the multiplying protests for once 
don’t appear to be inspired or 
planted by any one group, but 
seems to spring from a genuine 
concern on the part of the press 
and numerous ^organizations con¬ 
cerned with the welfare of the 
young. 

The upcoming hearings in N. Y. 
on sexsational and misleading ad-, 
vertising are but a part of the de¬ 
veloping national pattern, though 
there is little question that one or 
two well-publicized complaints 
such as the one emanating from 
Albany tend to “infect” other cities 
and to bring out slumbering resent¬ 
ments. What’s being faced at the. 
MPAA, however, is that the current 
"uprising” which also is seeing 
newspapers demanding the right to 
“censor” film ad copy, can’t just 
be waived off in the hope that it’ll 
die down naturally. 

While there’s ho “official” com¬ 
ment at MPAA headquarters, it’s 
well known that the Advertising 
Code has been battling it out nois¬ 
ily with the companies In recent 
months. Some ads, described as 
“shocking,”., have been submitted, 
and even when lengthv hassles pro¬ 
duce a compromise, the remaining 
impression is still sufficiently pro¬ 
vocative to stimulate sharp reac¬ 
tion. 

In part, the adsare simply a re¬ 
flection of the overall trend in 
Hollywood, which points to a much 
franker attitude towards sex on the 
screen. Since sex is still the film *.* 
most salable commodity, the trend 
in content is simply given a sharp 
expression in the ads, which drama¬ 
tize that aspect of the story. What 
the Code people are complaining 
about is that there’s virtually no ad 
campaign left any more that isn’t 
“hot” In one way or another, 
whether it’s via scene stills or the 
ad copy. 

Cited is the ad for “Cat on a 
Hot Tin Roof,” in which Judith An¬ 
derson points to a bed and declares 
that if a marriage goes on the 
rocks, “the rocks are right here.” 
Of course, this is a verbatim quote 
from the film, which passed the 
Production Code in the first place. 
Whether it’s the type of quote 
which incites teenagers to ask a lot 
of questions, which puritanical 
parents find awkward, is another 
problem. 

The ad-pub chiefs are aware that 
trouble is brewing, but they also 
know that they have to sell their 
pictures in a highly competitive 
market in which pix like “God Cre¬ 
ated Woman,” sold out-and-out on 
ttie sex angle, have done sensation¬ 
ally, while some others, sold with 
a less provocative approach, have 
died. Some comolaints are heard, 
too, re the ads for the horror en¬ 
tries. but the big beef is over 
S-E-X. _ 

Warners’ Baal Rallies, 
American & European 

Sales convention both in the 
U.S. and abroad have been sched¬ 
uled by Warner Brothers. 

The International sales meet got 
under way in London Monday (29) 
and is cliairmaned by WB Inter¬ 
national prexy Wolfe Cohen. 
There’ll be two other powwows, in 
Paris-end Rome, to be presided 
oyer by Joseph Hiimmel, manager 
for Continental Europe. 

In the U.S., the convention get* 
going in N.Y. at the homeoffic* 
Oct. 6. and runs through Oct. 8. 
Charles Roasberg, general sales 
manager; will presjd.e and Benja¬ 
min Kalmensqn, exec v.p., will de¬ 
liver. the kay address. 



FILM REVIEWS 


PSSBtfr 


Wednesday, October 1 * 1955 


The Geiaha 

(COLOR; C’SCtiPE) 

Lavish h«t not very exeithur 
period spectacle set in mid- 
19th Century Japan. Produc- . 
tion will rest strongly on John 
Wayne’s star polL 

Hollywood, Sept. 26. 

20th-Fox r«ie«»e of Eugene Frenke 
production. Stars John Wayne; features 
£iko Ando, Sam Jaffa, So iTaramura. 
Directed hjr John Huston. Screenjday, 
Charles Grayson; baaed an ■ * riwer »T 
Tiii« St. Joaeplu camera ffldpe 
Charles G. Clarke; music, Hngo Fried^ 
hofer; editor, Stuart Gilmore. Previewed 
at the atudio. Sept. 25, '58. Xunnin* time, 

105 lams, 

Townsend Harris .. 

Okichi ... 4*2? 

• Henry Heusken .-. • 

Tamara. . 50 Yiman u ira 

Ship Captain.Norman. 'raomwff 

Lt. Flririr... 

Prime. Minister .. 

Daimyo . Kodaya Ichikawa 

Shoron . Hiroshi Ywmato 

Harnitoa .Tokujiro ft e taniucht. 

Lord Hotta ..,. Fog nasal 

—^ Takeshi Kamafai 


__ lacking. Stuart Gilmore*# 

editing and the sound by ~W.- D. 
Hit* and Warren B. Delrfplain 
stales Hie production as slick as 
if it had all been dona on a sound 
stage. Art direction hy Lyle B. 
Wheeler and Jafck Martin takes 
fuH advantage of the Japanese 
background. Povoe . 

Momg Kng Ceilldeiiiirf 

Program metier an Oriental 
espionage, hat weii done 
within it* l&nits for strength¬ 
ening double hills. 


"The Barbarian and the Geisha’ 
is an Oriental pageant of primitive 
beauty based on the "true” story 
of the exploits of. the first H. S. 
consul to establish headquarters in 
Japan- Eugene Ftenke’s production 
for 2flth-Fax is lavish as John 
Huston -has directed it with an eye 
to utilizing native backgrounds and 
people for exotic effect. But it .is 
fig ht in ether departments. The 
John Wayne starrer, which intro¬ 
duces an attractive Japanese new- 
comer, Eiko- Ando, is -being r'e-j 
leased in immediate mass book¬ 
ings. which seems the smart hand¬ 
ling of this not fully satisfying 
presentation fear maximum Tetura. 

Once opened to Christian. Mis¬ 
sionaries, then dosed, Japan was, 
a Forbidden Kingdom tx> outsiders 
in 1656 when U. S. Consul-General 
Townsend Harris, played by 
Wayne, arrived off the port of 
Shhnoda, where the Charles Gray¬ 
son screenplay, based on Ellis St. 
Joseph’s story, begins. Prodded hy 
Yankee gunboats Japan had^signed 
a treaty granting diplomatic rep¬ 
resentation but the Japanese had 
no intention of honoring the docu¬ 
ment : ‘Even shipwrecked U. S. 
manners- were murdered when 
they landed in Japan. Harris was 
under orders from his government 
to open the door, on the hermeti¬ 
cally-sealed country, and, armed 
only with his own personality and 
accompanied only by bis European 
translator, Sam Jaffe, he prepared 
to do so.. . 

After initial harrassing and set¬ 
backs, Wayne gains the confidence 
of the local noble. So Yamamura, 
who agrees to take him to the court 
of the Shogun to plead his case. 
Meantime, to make Wayne’s isola¬ 
tion easier, Yamamura delivers a 
geisha, Eiko Ando, to the non- 
Nipponese barbarian. Although 
there is no explicit romance her 
tween Wayne Mid Miss Ando, an 
attachment is suggested, so- there 
is pathos in the end when circum¬ 
stances force them apart. Wayne is 
successful, however, in his diplo¬ 
matic mission- . 

"The Barbarian and the Geisha 1 
(originally titled "The Townsend 
Harris Story") is rich in atmos¬ 
phere and hi some stirringly- 
staged scenes, such as Wayne’s 
arrival by ship at Shimo&d*, his 
presentation to the Shogun’s court 
and an archery meet of medieval 
pomp. It is less exciting- in its 
personal delineations. Huston uses 
a technique of having the Japanese 
speak Japanese throughout It is 
effective initially from several 
points of view, hut it becomes 
somewhat annoying as the film 
progresses. The character played 
by Mis? Ando acts as the narrator 
behind some of this action, but this 
device is only partially successful. 

The excitement that is usually a 
hallmark, of Huston’s direction is 
surprisingly sparse/. His special 
-facility of creating strong and com¬ 
manding characters seems to he 
submerged, perhaps deliberately, 
in the interests of historical accu¬ 
racy. The dialog is often declam¬ 
atory and does little to make the 
principles come alive. While the 
film is continuously pleasinff to the 
eye, it too seldom stirs the mind 
or touches the heart. 

Wayne makes a stalwart and 
credible hero, although handi¬ 
capped by a role that seems more 
a figurehead ..of the U. S. govern¬ 
ment than a figure of a sin;' 
American. Miss Ando, whose lot 
are only slightly Oriental, is most 
moving and makes a vivid film 
how. Sam Jaffe creates sympathy, 
in his role, and the Japanese actors 
who make up the bulk of thexast, 
include So Yamamura, Morita. 
Hiroshi Yamato and Kodaya Ichi¬ 
kawa in memorable portrayals: 

Charles G. Clarke’s photography, 
in glowing BeLuxe color, is adept 
at catching the delicate shadings 
typical of Japanese coloration* and 
captures also a sense of flow and 
grandeur in the action scenes. 
Hugo Frledhofer’s score is pur¬ 
posely romantic, and useful in in¬ 
fusing a warmth into scenes other- 


Hollywood, Sept. 26. 

United Artlria release of Robert E. 
Kent. Stars. Gen* Butk co- 

stars Beverly Tyler, Allison Hayes; fea¬ 
tures Edward Xemmer, Michael Pate, 
Rico Alaniz. Directed by Edwar d L: Cxim. 
Screenplay, Orville H. Hampton; camera, 
Kenneth Peach; muric. Paul Sawtell and 
Bert Shelter; editor.-Bdwardr Mann. Pre¬ 
viewed at> Goldwyn* studio. Sept. 23, 
Running time, 47 JAINS. 

Casey Reed . Geha Barry. 

Fay Well*.Berwiy Tyler 

Sene Martina ............ AlliaonHayes 

Owen Howard...Noel Drayton. 

Frank Paige . Edward Kernmer- 

John Blanchard ....... Michael Pate 

Mato .... W. Beal Won* 

Mao . Mel Prestife 

Dan Young ................ King: Caldeni 

Brooks .. Bryan. Roper 

Fernando Rico Alaniz 

Dinug .- Philip Ate 

Chief.. Walter Woor 

Tooseff .... _ 

Redhead . Aaa.Rhyaor. 

Inspector Owen McGivney 

Linov . Lou Krugman 

Maitre D*_...—-- Jack Kenny 

Jen ....... Bill Saito 


British and American espionage 
agents, are pitted against theJGom- 
-munists in "Hong Kong Confiden¬ 
tial," a melodrama designed-for 
program bills that will be an asset 
in the lower position that is-its 
niche. Robert E. Kent’s production 
-for United Artists, directed by 
Edward L. Cahn, deals with some 
supposed behind-the-scenes action 
by the major powers in the Middle 
and Far East, but it wisely sticks 
to almost purely personal adven¬ 
ture without getting too involved 
in higher echelon machinations or 
their meanings. 

Gene Barry plays a U.S. agent 
whose cover is.that of a night club ' 
singer in Hong Kong, When the 
young son of a Middle East-Arab 
.potentate is kidnapped and be¬ 
lieved held in Barry’s area, by Com¬ 
munist abductors, Barry is as¬ 
signed to locate Mm. The climax 
of tiie story is a plan hy the Com¬ 
munists to murder the boy and 
Barry so it will,, appear that’ the 
snatch was a D.S. trick to-pressure 
the Arab state into a favorable 
alliance with' the West. Action 
shifts from Hong Kong to neigh¬ 
boring Macao, with, interpolated 
shots of world capitals—some 
stock and' some staged—rand gains 
substance bfcr use' of a serm-docu-1 
mentary, narration device. 

Orville H. Hampton’s screenplay 
avoids the pitfalls of pedantry, 
establishes the simple characters 
well, and provides plenty of plot 
turns which director Cahn uses to 
keep things boiling. Gene Barry is 
likable and credible as the singer- 
spy, and Beverly Tyler, as a good 
girl, and Allison Hayes, as a bad 
one, are capable. Edward Kemmer, 
Michael Pate, Rico Alaniz, Noel 
Drayton, King 1 Calder and Philip 
Ahn are important in the support¬ 
ing cast. ' - ■. * 

Kenneth Peach’s photography' 
does everything possible to make 
the back lot sets look like the Far 
East and Edward' Mann ’s editing 
ties in. all together for soperior 
effect. Music by Paul Sawtell and 
Bert Shefter is good. Pmoe. 


Faachdi 

T&is r&eoM. from -India, 
which: is being distributed by 
Edward Harrison, was re¬ 
viewed in. Variety June 6, . 
1956, It had just won the 
"most human document 
award" at the Cannes Film 
Festival but its showing in 
the States had been held up. 
It opened in New York’s Fifth 
Avenue Cinema on Monday 
( 22 ). : 

-Reviewer, Mask, found the 
Cannes accolade justified. He 
found tile "treatment of old 
ago perhaps one of the most 
profound ever seen on the 
screen," adding that its “high 
entertainment story values” 
enhance its chancesi. "A/ 
natural for the art house cir- 
cult;”, oonimented the ap-. 
praiier. __ 


in U.K., the pic cannot expect to 
go far-in the'U.S. „ 

/ Set in-Jamaica, "Summer” has 
Bill Travers » a dedicated school¬ 
master teaching at Alexander 
Knox’s progressive school. One of 
the pupils is a particular problem 
child whose confidence Travers- 
works patiently to gain. That is one 
yarn. The other. story line deals 
with Travers’ chequered romance 
with a glamorous air-hostess* and 
the headmaster’s frustrated wife: 
trying to wreck the romance and 
f capture Travels for- her own- 
•amusement. Where the two stories 
impinge on each-other is towards 
the end* Loaded, -Travels’ resist¬ 
ance to the schoohnarm breaks 
down* the child spots them smooch-. 
in his rooms ?md» in a tit of] 
i ys rage, rushes out into 


fdually Miss Zetterling leaves Kjet- 
lin. He salves his disappointment 
by having affairs with new girls 
However he cah’t. forget his true 
love ana asks her to marry him 
when she’s on the verge of leaving 
'the country. As the plane leaves 
with' her aboard at the finale, 
Kjellin is figuratively left up in the 
;air as is the audience. 

Miss Zetterling is convincing as 
a girl haunted by the feelings of a 
woman in love.- Kjellin is impres¬ 
sive ax her romantic vis-a-vis while 
other cast members headed by 
Birger Malmstem and Gunlacg 
Hagberg lend good support. Direc¬ 
tion of Lars-Eric Kjellgren is tops 
as’ ; are Eric Nordgren’s music and 
.Gunnar Fischer’s camerawork. 

Boudoir scenes are' tastefully 
done and shouldn’t affect the film's: 
chances In any censor's eyes. Swe¬ 
dish dialog; however, occasionally 
is a bit risque and could offend* 
some quarters..- On the whole this 
production has ample exploitation 
values since the story hints at a 
“sinful” Sweden* Winq. 


Ifedr Av Cheval «C 
Par S y tid i 

(FRENCH) 

Paris, Sept; 23. 

Qnedle release of Rectaa-Fllmsonar 
production, Stax* NodrNod; ftttont 
Denise Grey, Miseha Auer, Derry CowL 
.Noel Boquevert, Directed tax' Jean. Drer. 
ville. Screenplay. . JeanJacquei Vital, 
Robert Roccs* Jacques Grello; camera,' 
"lac; editor, Jean Kbyte. At Haris, 
tenln# time. 9» MINS 

_-.;..NoeLNoel 

Haiuuerlte .. Denise Grey 

Panov Miseha Auer 

Maize_............. Noeb Roquevert 

Minlstre ..Dazzy Co*lt 


Pezzo, tapapms, 

• Capita** 
(lTALO-GERMAN) 
(Fexramiaeolor-Seope) 

Rome, Sept. 17. 

AtlantieOlwi, yel eas» q f an Atlantisfiiu>- 

DeSica; - features —Folco TjiTU , Ti.ii,iu ^ 
Caren, Heinz Rein eke, Mao ManfredL 
Infmar Zeisberf, Helene ~--- ~ 


eesco Lavasnino. Previewed in Rome. 
Runnins time, fi MINS, 
mnesto DeRossi r,....... Vtttorta 

,Hwis Richter .. Heinr. a - 

Sdaccabratta .. Folco Lulll 


hurricane and falls to her death 
over a cliff. This brings the school- 
marm. to her senses and paves the 
way for Travers? romance with the 
air-hostess to pan out satisfactorily. 

Miss McKenna as the tickle air- 
hostess looks the complete charmer 
and hers is. the only major per¬ 
formance to rate any ipedals. But 
she is not helped overmuch hy her 
co-star. Bill Travers, who is also 
her real life husband. He plays the 
role of the schoolmaster with a 
stolidity that is rarely less than 
dulL Audiences may find it diffi¬ 
cult to believe that Miss McKenna 
would have preferred, him to tbe ; 
othferstnngto-her bow, man-abont- 
town Carl Moirner. Yvonne Mitchell 
does the best that she can with 
the ungrateful part of the head¬ 
master's embittered and sulky wife 
wMle'Knar fs his usual competent 
self as., the- stuffy' headmaster. 
There are_a couple of small cameos 
which are' well played. Guy Middle- 
tdh asr a racy schoolmaster and Gor¬ 
don Heath with a subtle and cul¬ 
tured performance as a Negro 
coroner. 

An American child, Ellen Barrie, 
makes her British, debut in "Pas¬ 
sionate Summer" and shows? much 
intrihgenee as the precocious mop¬ 
pet oyer whom, all the fuss is about 
That some sound performers fail 
to rive very much to the film is 
due partly to the screenplay by 
Joan Henry. Miss Henry is an 
established and skilled writer hut 
this stodgy tale defeated her.. 

Rudolph Cartier’s direction does 
less for the actors than for the 
colorful backgrounds. He has 
caught splendidly the flavor of the 
Jamaican locale* the noise, the 
happiness and the heat. While a lot 
of the film was actually shot hr the 
West Indies, a great deal Was done 
in the studio and the matching is 
faultless. Rich. 


Passionate Sumer 

(BRITISH—COLOR) 

Leisurely romantic- drama set 
in Jamaica; appealing perform¬ 
ance by Virginia McKenna and 
Insh tropical locale. 


London, Sept. 25. 

-^nk production . (Kenneth: Harper- 
Gears* Willoughby} and release. Stan 
JJrsinia McKenna, Bill Travers, Yvonne 
Mitchell. Directed hy Rudolph. Cartier. 
Screenplay, Joan Henry; editor. Roshal* 
Mills; camera, Ernest Steward; music, 
Angelo Lavagnlno. At Leicester Square 
Theatre, London. Running.time, 144 MINS. 

Judy ... Vir ginia McKenna 

Douglas Lockwood.Bill Travere 

Mrs. Pawley.. Yvonne 

Mr. Pawley ............. Alexander Kruvr 

. Carl Mohner 

Silvia .. Barrie 

Duffield ............... Guy Middleton 

Coroner ... Gordon Hterfh 

Mrs. Morgan. ..Peari Prescod 

Jot Harry QnaaMf 

Cable Clerk ............ Ros*>e Holder 

Boatman .. ............. Danny Daniels 

Air Hostess ................. Jan Holden 

Shopkeeper .. John Harrison 

—...Bruce Pitt 

Norah ...- Waveney Lee 

Al a n .... Martin.Stephens 


Lek P« Reguhagni 
(The Ralabsw Dfleuunm) 
(SWEDISH), 

Stockholm, Sept. 10. 

Svensk VUmindustri production enU re- 
Jease. Stars Mai Zetterling, AH Kjellin; 

' features Birger Mahnsten, Gonlog- Hag- 
berXL Isu Queneel, Claes Tbriander.. n se- 
.Marie Brandt, Inga Landgre. Gumiar. 
SJoberf, Lars Edge. Directed by Lars- 
Eric KjcUgreu. Screenplay, Yllgot Sfcwan; 
camera^ Gunnar Fiecher; mule. Eric. 
Nordgreu. At Roda Kvarn, Stockholm, 
SCpt: 4, '98. Running time, 91 MIMS. 
Vanda:.... Mai Zetterling 


Respite an appealing perform¬ 
ance by Virginia McKenna and some 
excellent color lensing by Ernest 
Steward, "Passionate .Summer” re¬ 
mains the sort of glossy novelettish 
yam that will do nothing for the 
reputation of the British film in¬ 
dustry. It is a leisurely romantic 
drama, c'”tt?-ed with cliches and 
unifis' r falog. ' Although .the 
stars may have some marquee value 


Good story, in the British. Ealing 
Stucfio tradition, - given uneven 1 
handling fiere^ foT disappointing 
results, though opening half of 
pic, plus cast names, will, carry 
it through to okay returns in its 
countries of origin. Has remake 
possibilities. 

Anti-war theme pervades tale 
of captain of a tmy vegetable 
steamer plying the Italian .coast¬ 
line during the last war. A chance 
meeing with a British sub, which 
avoids battle with the midget 
prey, ; and subsequent interroga¬ 
tion by German intelligence gives 
rCapt. DeRossi (DeSica) a mistaken 
idea of his ships' battle poSsibiT-. 
ities vs. the Allied Navy. Equipped 
with a ridiculous cannon, he de~j 
eides to let his-vegetable cargo rot 
and steam into battle, only to sink 
in knee-deep water when his 
strained boilers' ‘.explode. 

Buildup Is' fine and often hilari¬ 
ous, but director Staudte lets pace 
slacken at halfawy mark, and pic 
loses style and momentum from 
then on. DeSica correctly hams 
up his role as the would-be battle 
commander, while able backing: 
comes from Folco Lulll as Ms en¬ 
gineer, Heinz R'eincke as a Ger¬ 
man sailor detached to the tramp 
steamer,- and Rolf Tasne *s * Ger-r 
man officer. Others' in- large cast 
have less td work. with. 

Gabor Ppgany’s Ferraniaeolor 
lensing captures the Riviera-loca¬ 
tions colorfully, and Francesco 
L&vagnino’s musical score appro¬ 
priately counterpoints, action.. 
Technical credits are standard; 

Hawk. 


Science fiction and French bour¬ 
geois situation, comedy are fairly 
well mixed in this spoof. Soma 
good comic invention, goes astray. 
when the amnesiac middle-aged- 
hero get# mixed up in a trip in a- 
ihan-carrying Russian sputnik.' On 
Its timely qualities It could rank 
for dualer use in offshore situa¬ 
tions. ‘ - ’ - - '• - 

After losing: his memory in an 
accident, Noel-Noel mistakes a 
Russo dog which lands In a sput¬ 
nik im his yard for hi# own long 
lost canine^ When the government. 
cannot get the' hound from him 
the Russians Invite him to Moscow 
where he accidentally goex off in 
the new, ^>i^nik with, # .Russo 
prafewor, writ played^b ? Miseha 
Auer. 

Nori-Noel’s doper acting as the 
shrewd . dlstructful Frenriunan, 
caught up In jsef-fi, gets the most 
laughs in this easygoing pic. Others 
also join in to make the going 
quite funny at times. ; But so-so 
special effects -detract from the 
final episodes. Russo scenes, are 
well done and kidding hits home 
at times, especially in scenes 
where the rabsentminded French¬ 
man keeps asking about the Czar, 
Mosk . 


etc. 


CdteHvtt La 

(That Night) 

(FRENCH) 

Paris, Sept. 28. 

Ciaadla rdeaa* ®f SaproZUm pro*, 
tion. Stan Mylene Dtmoaaeot. 

Ronet, Jean Servalx; features Bernard. 
NoeiL Jm* Inra. Directed br Zvntec 
Caaeneinre. Screenplay^ F. Guerin, K F . 
Eeyi from'the novel by Mehd.l rttta ; 
timm L. It BursI; edttor; Louleett* 
Hbutecoeur. At Marlanan. Paris. Bunn ie # 
time. 1M MIMS. 

SyMe . . Mylene Denongeof; 

Jean:...Meuzlee Rwieti 

. ... Jean; Servais., 

.. Bernsrd NoeT 1 


Bioern’a mother. 


, Birger 

Gunloe# Bttigbey 

. Claes^llielander 

The- Blonde-Ebe-Marie-Brsndt 

The Redhead... Inga.' Landgre 

District Attorney.. Gunnar Sioeberg 

The Judge ... Lars Egge 


Fine boxoffice prospects in the 
international market loom for "The 
Rainbow Dilemma" a romance 
-drama with sexy overtones. Names 
of Mai Zetterling and Alf Kjellin 
will help dress marquees. The 
Svensk Filmindustri production ap¬ 
pear# to be a particularly strong 
entry for U. S, art houses and 
Swedish-language areas. 

While the Vilgot Sjoman screen¬ 
play outlines the familiar story of 
hoy- meets- girl, nevertheless its. 
treatment is fresh and engaging. 
-Miss Zetterling, a girl with certain 
complexes and a social pathos, 
meets Kjellin in Stockholm U. cir¬ 
cles. A .man, of 30,. he shuns mar¬ 
riage due to unpleasant recollec¬ 
tions of his parents’ experiences. 

Couple become romantically at¬ 
tached! but a conflict arises and 


Suspense item also mixes in 
glimpses of ft rather decadent 
Parisian highlife as well as varia¬ 
tions on pure and profane love. 
But suspense is somewhat obvious, 
and characterization not up to tile 
amorous revelations, thus making 
thin an okay local entry and mainly 
for possible dualer or program' 
situations internationally on Ra 
well-made aspects. 

A young magazine layout man 
has his wife, a model for the mag, 
coveted by hi# rather degen era t e 
editor. When the wife toys around 
With the elder editor to get a loan, 
the young man trie# to kill him 
outside hi# homehut strikes down 
the wrong man. Then comes black¬ 
mail, the true love arising between 
husband and wife, and the final 
telegraphed denouement. . 

Acting is good but not knowing, 
enough to give true substance to 
the too simply etched Characters. 
Direction by newcomer Maurice 
Caseneuve is slick but too man¬ 
nered. Fewer effects and more 
humanity would have made this, a 
more worthwhile item. Technic¬ 
ally, it hr fine. Mosk, 


Sotedatt 

CITALO-SPANISH) 

(Color-CinemaScope) 

_ , Rome, Sept. 17. 

Lit* Fite rctecae of * Lnx-Axpa co-pro¬ 
duction. Star* Fernando Feraan Gomes. 
German Cobo&r Pilar Canxino. Directed 
Graxynd Mario Craznl Screen- 
Craveri. DeConcini, Earriya. 
•»?* Gnerra, from a ator# by 
Vicente Kacrira. Camera- (C*Scope-Fer. 
zamiaclerl; Mfrio- Cmveri; marie. Fren- 
«saee Layayninq; editor. Mario SerendreL - 
PZjejaewed ia Rome. RunMny. time, '9# 

• %-.- Fernando Fern*n Gomes 

..-.German Coboa 

A. single plot line is the basic 
difference between “Soledad” and 
the authors* previous feature doc¬ 
umentaries such as "Los Contin¬ 
ent*’ and “Smpire pf the Sun.^ 
Basically, ■‘this'' One Is' an' illustra¬ 
tion of certain Spanish folkways 
as the others handled ofhgr areas; 
yet somehow "Sole'dad”’ -falls to 
click with- the same Impact. It 
should play o* well, however, in it# 
bracket, with okay export chances. 

Some of the usual, dwH much 
unusual footage on Spain -ha# been 
compiled and splendidly lensed 
by Mario -Craven andThis team. 
There are the bullfights, the gypsy 
dances, the colorful "procession# 
and pageants which abound ia 
that, country, plus some previously 
unlensed facets of Iberia. Perhaps 
what hurts the picture most Is the 
compromise solution adopted: iV# 
'neither a fully satisfying feature 
documentary (the plot take# up 
ton much: footage! nor * satisfac¬ 
tory feature film (too much hack- 
drop color).' Plot aa-#uch concern# 
uahappy wa nderin g# of man whose 
girl Is forced Into unhappy mar¬ 
riage with a rival After flash- 
hack# and incidental adventure# 
along his travels, rival Is reported 
dead in guhflght, and end see# 
lovers reunited. 

German Cobos, Fernando Fernm 
.Gomez, and comely Pilar Cansino 
da thdr best with material, with, 
healthy assist from music by 
Ftencesco Lavagnlno. Hawk. 


Foreif* Ctfsdes 




M—m. Die (Tbc BaMitt 
aa# G o€l. ( ITALIAN). Lux EUm 
of «» XHT (teamaloarafiea arodaetion; 
Stare V«ra Cacoza. VSteri* TMBInt Ita 
torbi Ibricttb. GabririaFiriatti. Boharta 
Sim Writtei and directed bar Lcinrrlolai 
camera, Boa Seratta; marie; Prize Mor> 
fan; editor,, Roberto CfaaqolaL Prcrrivo# 
la Rome, Rnnninr time, 9S MIN#. 


: Modern-day fairy tale about 
orphan hoy who decides to pick 
out a mother for himself. He's 
aided in this by Vittorio DeSfca, 
who plays a Divine- Messenger fir 
various disguise#, and the- hoy 
(Marietto) finally winds up with, 
his chosen one> ballerina Vera 
Cecova, who in turn wind# up 
.with her promised suitor. - 
Fable is handled with some tasto 
and looks headed for good general 
audience response in Italy and 
other* lingual situations^ The 
■ CeCova h#tae win help in Germ&ny. 
plus that of DeSica. Doubtful for 
the U.S. Huwk. 

































































7 


Wednesday, October 1» 1958 




Hcturi 


Theatremen Have Often Produced’ 

Point is being made by the anti-Joseph R. Vogel faction at 
Loew’s that Vogel, having been in the field of theatre operations 
throughout his business career, is not particularly qualified to call 
the turns on the production front. 

History shows that many theatremen have taken the helm of film ' 
corporations—and with success. They include Nate J. Blumberg 
{Universal), Spyros P. Skouras (20th-Fox), Barney Balaban (Para¬ 
mount), Ned E. Depinet (RKO) and Jack L. Warner (in. associa¬ 
tion with his brothers) (Warners). 

Too, Nicholas M. Schenek and his predecessor, the great pio¬ 
neer Marcus Loew, were -basically “theatremen” before piloting 
the entire Loew’s-Metro organization. 

But the industry was just growing up when they took over, ac¬ 
cording to the versus-Vogel argument. Production is .now in a 
critical state and requires the talents of someone who has been 
savvy to the ways of film-making, via immediate contact over a 
Substantial period of time,' t'is debated. 

Vogel hasn’t publicly altered a rebuttal, but it’s to be noted that 
soine' strong boxoffice contenders have been turned out during his 
. presidency and others that show promise are due. These include 
“High Society,” “Teahouse of the August Moon,” “Don’t Go Near 
the Water/’ the current “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” and the upcoming 
“Ben Hut” '' ' " - - > 


Green^Newman llesis on Loew’s 
Debts: Who Gets TV Residuals 
Should Eat That $24, 1 


Another Proxy War Threatens Vogel; 
Need A Solomon To Divide Loew Baby 


Continuing as a point of major 
consideration in the Loew’s separa¬ 
tion due' under the antitrust de¬ 
cree is the corporation’s'indebted¬ 
ness which is now about $24,000,- 
000. Who’s to assume this—the 
theatre or the picture company or 
Is it to be divided, and. in'what 
proportion? - - 

Proposal has been made by the 
Louis Green-Jerome Newman 
stockholder-board group along 
these lines. The borrowing obliga¬ 
tions are to be met by. whichever of 
the two surviving companies .takes 
television rights to the. Loew’s- 
Metro pre-1948 and post-1048 prod¬ 
uct. The earlier, or pre-’48 pic¬ 
tures, have been in tv circulation 
since the summer of 1956; These 
have been out .on a lease- basis, 
With the rights to revert to M-G 
after seven years. 

Nothing has-been dohe as yet 
about renting the post-'48’s but 
that these are a source of impor¬ 
tant potential .revenue obviously 
is a big factor in the Green-New- 
man thinking. 


Skeptic Braidt 

Contlnnaa from pace 4 —i 

^scheduled for (he purpose of ex¬ 
plaining its plans. Global sales 
chief George Weltner is to be the 
. officiating officer at these with, do¬ 
mestically, Hugh Owen, Sidney 
-Deneau and, on the ad-pub end, 
v.p. Jerry Pickman rounding out i 
the main supporting cast. 

Session along these lines was 
held in New York this week with 
100 in attendance, including the 
Tar brass, exhibitors and- the 
press.' Weltner; introduced by 
Owen, detailed Par’s stake in the 
immediate future and this con¬ 
sists of an investment of a mini¬ 
mum of $30,000,000 in 20 pictures 
(the money does not include par¬ 
ticipations, by stars, and other's) in 
'addition to production that might 
Come along. 

In effect, said Weltner, it was a 
reaffirmation of faith in the theat¬ 
rical industry future on the part 
of Barney Balaban,. president of 
Par, and the company itself. With 
the use of slides to help dramatize 
the message,. Weltner recited the 
specific pictures upcoming and. the 
stars involved. 

Now back to Brandt. Short time 
ago this theatreman, who was a 
luncheon guest of Pickman’s men¬ 
tioned to the latter his suspicions 
anent Par’s theatrical role. Pick- 
man referred Brandt to Balaban 
who was sitting nearby. A meeting 
was arranged for a couple of days 
later and Balaban told Brandt of 
the company’s plans. The film 
company prez subsequently had an 
afterthought: Why not teU the 
world about' this faith in theatres, 
as demonstrated by the pic'line¬ 
up? 

And • that’s how it came to be. 
This is the genesis of the blue- 
.print for 100 meetings in world 
cap.ita(s for the sole purpose of 
ramming^ home Par’s message 
about films for theatres. 


Kidpix, When Edited 

Seeking a way to revive its 
virtually defunct Children’s 
| Film Library, the community c 
relations ’ department - of - the 
Motion Picture Assn, of Amer¬ 
ica has drawn up a list of post¬ 
war features which could be 
edited to suit the purpose of 
' 'children’s shows. i : 

* Survey showed that about 70 
films would lend themselves 
to this treatment. MPAA is - 
; getting cost estimates to estab¬ 
lish whether the editing job is 
within range of possibility. 

If it proves reasonable, MPAA 
prexy Eric Johnston, may be 
called on to “sell" the idea to 
-the companies.. 

ItH Take Up To 
A Year for RKO 
To Tby It Off 

Fade of a major picture com¬ 
pany' is a slow process. Although 
■inactive in theatrical production, 
■and .with Its past . films about 
played out in the domestic market, 
RKO still figures to remain an ac¬ 
tive corporate entity for nihe 
months to another year. 

That’s about the amount of time 
required for the windup of affairs; 
with nearly all business to Concern 
the foreign market. 

EdwaTd L. Walton, v.p. who 
-joined the company as assistant to 
the president (Daniel T. O’Shea) 
and in recent months has - con¬ 
cerned himself with whatever 
economies could be placed into 
effect, bows out at the end of this 
week. 

Walter Branson, global sales 
manager and as such the top film 
man in the picture company’s 
makeup, remains. Also staying on : 
are Sidney Kramer, foreign sales 
manager; Harry , Gittleson, as¬ 
sistant to Branson, and Robert 
Hawkinson,. head of foreign opera¬ 
tions. - 

Their main function is to super¬ 
vise product sales - and playoffs 
abroad. Since playoffs in some ! 
countries follow domestic release' 
by as much as a couple of years, 
this kind of exec supervision is 
required. 

Most of the RKO backlog for¬ 
eign-wise is released through the, 
J. Arthur Rank Organization. RKO 
has entered a deal with Loew’s, 
with the latter to eover territories 
not serviced by. Rank. These In¬ 
clude Australia and New Zealand, j 
On the domestic front, product 
which had been released by Uni- j 
versa! as just about played out ] 
Final RKO production, “Naked and 
the Dead,” is now in distribution 
via Warners. 

The parent RKO Teleradio has a 
couple.nf pictures now in work in 
Cuba. These essentially are for 
television but may go to theatres 
if upon completion they shape up 
I adequately for such handling. 


Briefs From The Lots 


—5 --- 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

' Howard Keel will play title role 
in Rowland Y. Lee’s “The Big Fish¬ 
erman,” joining Susan Kohner, 
Herbert Lom and Beulah Bondi in 
Lloyd C. Douglas novel. .. British 
director Leslie Norman signed- to 
helm H-H-L’s “The Summer of the 
Seventeenth Doll,” ruffing in Aus¬ 
tralia late November . . Robert 

Wise and writer Nelson Gldding 
team up on production of two in¬ 
dies under Wise BAP Enterprises, 
Initiator, to be Gidding’s original, 
“PIMB” (for “Pleasure la My Busi¬ 
ness”) .20th-Fox , registered 

“Cleopatra,” novel by Sir Rider; 
Haggard, with MPAA . .Metro 
producer Albert Zugamith cast 
Steve Cochran as star of his Oct. 
6 starter, “The Beat Generation” 

. *, Actor Riehard Ney optioned 

Alan Caillou’s novel, “Alien Vir¬ 
tue,” for . indie- production with 
himself. as producer-director-star. 

Lewis Milestone will helm 
“Oceans 11,” indie co-produced by 
Frank Sinatra and Peter Lawford 
... . Tony Curtis and Jeff Chandler 
pair up' in Universal’s “Operation 
Petticoat” . . . 20th-Fox lifted op¬ 
tion of; PhiUp Dunne’s producer- 
director-writer pact . . . Boris Pe¬ 
tr off will produce pair of exploita¬ 
tion pix for Hal Roach Jr., “They 
Lived a Million Years” and “Teen¬ 
age Scarface” .". . Gene Fowler 
Jr., set to co-produce and direct 
original screenplay by Louis Vittes 
to be produced by Dana Andrews’ 
indie Lawrence Productions , . . 


N.Y. French Office 
More "Commercial’ 

, French Film Office in N. Y., 
rounding out its third year of ac¬ 
tivity next month, , will take on an 
increasingly commercial character, 
Joseph Matemati, head of the bu- 
reab, disclosed in N. Y. last -week. 
He returned recently from an ex¬ 
tended leave in France. 

Two immediate steps are being 
taken in the direction of turning 
this semi-governmental office into 
more’of a commercial agency. One 
is the hiring of an attorney who 
will concern himself with the legal 
problems of the French in the 
States. Another is the retention of 
a firm of CPAs to create at least a 
partial check on the independents’ 
books. 

In addition, the office will con¬ 
tinue with its promotional activi¬ 
ties, seeking- to acquaint public and 
press with the upcoming-* French 
product. Maternati said that, 
whether the French Aid Law is 
extended or not, the N. Y. office 
will continue indefinitely and nn 
a normal budget. The opening of 
an office in Montreal has been de¬ 
cided on. 

Pointing to- the unquestioned 
number one position of the French 
among the foreign industries seek¬ 
ing their place in the sun in the 
U. S., Matemati said the necessi¬ 
ties increasingly were in the com¬ 
mercial field, i.e. the question of 
getting, broader distribution, and a 
more effective supervision of cur¬ 
rent release and accounting pro¬ 
cedures. Aim of the French pro¬ 
ducers" unquestionably- will .be to 
get more of their ijlms placed with 
the majors. 

Wall Street’s Response 
To Loew’s Wrangling 

The word about the possibly 
impending proxy fight at Loew’s 
hit the Wall' Street grapevine 
pronto. Film corporation’s board 
meeting last Thursday (25) didn’t 
break up until 6:30 p.m. 

But by the time the Big Board 
opened for trading the following 
day at 9 a.m. the “inside informa¬ 
tion” had been spread. Result 
was hot and heavy exchanges in 
the stock and this went on through 
the day. 

Loew’s topped all issues on the 
New York Stock Exchange for the 
day in terms of volume, with 102,- 
800 shares exchanging hands. 
Price jumped S1.6214 per share. 
Closing at $22.1214. 


By GENE ARNEEL | 

Loew’s Inc., once the model of 
interior harmony for film corpora¬ 
tions, again is coming face to face 
with the prospect of internal war¬ 
fare of the type that crippled top- 
echelon operations a year ago. 

Specifically, a new proxy fight 
loom* between the management 
team headed by president Joseph 
R. Vogel and a faction identified 
With the Louis Green-Jerome New¬ 
man combination. Latter two are 
board members, important stock¬ 
holders and. Green, in addition, is 
chairman of the exec financial com¬ 
mittee. 

Although neither, side is going 
on record with official statements, 
recent developments, including an 
eight-hour board meeting in New 
York last Thursday (25), bespeak 
the “brinkmanship” (to borrow the 
John Foster Dulles term) policy 
that’s being pursued within both 
the opposing camps.; 

To meet the terms of the anti¬ 
trust decree hovering over Loew’s 
for several years, the company is 
called upon to “divorce”—that is, 
separate' its American theatres 
from production-distribution. This 
maker-seller split previously was 
accomplished by Warners, Para¬ 
mount, RKO and 20th-Fox and in 
each instance the studio and dis¬ 
tribution facilities were joined 
with such other corporate assets 
as music and record adjuncts, for¬ 
eign theatres, etc. United States 
theatres then became wholly sepa¬ 
rate. 

This had been the plan for 
Loew’s originally—on the surface 
—but now the Green-Newman syn¬ 
dicate wants a switch. They're in¬ 
sisting that the studio, plus distri¬ 
bution, go on its own, with the 


COMPOandTOA ] 
Shoot W Guns 
At Each Other 

The Council of Motion Picture 
Organizations and the Theatre 
Owners of .. America aren’t on 
speaking terms ,these days. Fric¬ 
tion has built up 'between the two 
organizations, with one feeling 
that the other isn’t doing the job. 

Bitterness is particularly pro¬ 
nounced over the issue of the 
business building campaign -— at 
the financial end—has largely been 
handled by TOA. COMPO has long 
felt that it should really have been 
the outfit to be assigned the BB 
drive, and it’s made no secret of 
Its .belief that, had it been in 
charge, the campaign might have 
gotten off the ground. 

TOA, in turn, feels that, with 
the exception of the tax relief, 
largely accomplished by Robert 
W. Coyne, COMPO hasn’t outdone 
itself. While it’s supposed to be 
something of a p.r. mouthpiece for 
the industry, its actual program 
and activities have been very lim¬ 
ited. 

How strong the feeling is be¬ 
tween the two orgs was emphasized 
recently when COMPO put out its 
release on getting the tax exemp¬ 
tion, raised to $1. .It prominently 
noted that it was obviously the 
outfit to represent the industry in 
any joint endeavors. 


theatre enterprise emerging as the 
parent 

As Vogel View* Needs 

They presented this proposal to 
the board last Thursday and eight 
hours of hassling resulted. Vogel 
said no. His argument appears to 
be that production, being hazardous 
at any time and particularly at 
present because of market uncer¬ 
tainties, needs the kind of cushion 
that could be provided by the earn¬ 
ings of M-G’s affiliated enterprises. 
Vogel wants to stay on as president 
of the “parent,” this senior segment 
to be the production plant, music 
publishing houses, foreign exhibi¬ 
tion, television subsidiaries, etc. 

According to the Yogel view, a 
film company without such support 
is at a competitive disadvantage. In 
example of this truism the RKO 
picture company, when stripped 
naked and relying solely on film- 
making and film-distributing, went 
under. 

Be that is it may, the Green- 
Newman group is out to do battle. 
Present indications are that they 
Will not, under any circumstances, 
give in. 

An oddity but significant is this: 
They’re high on Vogel, but as a 
theatreman. They want him to taka 
the helm of the exhibition company 
that would come into being if their 
ideas on the split Materialize. But 
they insist he’s not qualified to 
run a studio. 

Loew’s has made considerable 
progress over the past troubled 
year in terras of economies ef¬ 
fected. There has been marked 
achievement in the way of efficient 
operation. Product has improved. 

The gains have been made 
under Vogel’s regime—but is 
he to get the credit? Many 
execs In the trade believe he 


deserves it as the chief exes 
in charge. 

The Green-Newman army in ef¬ 
fect scoffs at this. The advances 
were made within the framework 
of policies which they laid out and 
down. Or so they say. 

Got the Muscle? 

Green, Newman, et aL, have in¬ 
timated they have 2,000,000 voting 
shares to support them at this time. 
This amounts to nearly 40% of the 
total outstanding common stock 
issue. They'd have a strong edge hi 
a proxy contest obviously, if the 
alleged 2,000,000 stay put and 
others are enlisted. 

Wall Street sources stated this 
week that the Lazard Freres and 
Lehman Bros, banking firms,,which 
clearly are powerful, and Joseph 
Tomlinson, still one of the top in¬ 
dividual stpckholders (with about 
175,000 shares) are now aligned 
with Green-Newman. 

The anti - Vogel forces, say 
sources intimate with them, em¬ 
phasize that no matter the out¬ 
come there’s to be no liquidation. 
They.say they want the studio to 
regain its dominant position, not 
only for the good of Loew’s Thea¬ 
tres but for the entire industry at 
well. 

If the “usually reliable sources* 
can be depended upon, both Vogel 
and his opponents are anxious to 
achieve the same result. This 
would be a healthy studio and thea¬ 
tre operation. It’s for sure that 
Vogel, too, wants to build, not 
liquidate. But each side has strong, 
i opposing feelings about the ap- 
I proach. 


Ticture Biz Means Picture Studio’ 

Joe Vogel is fighting the idea of getting rid of the Culver City 
studio entirely. As recommended by the Louis Green^Jerry New¬ 
man faction in Loew’s. Vogel still thinks that “there’s no picture 
_ business without a picture studio,” Admittedly it needn’t be as 
' lavish and extensive as in the old days of Hollywood mass-pro- 
. duction. 

As is detailed herewith, Vogel as the moment is riding high 
With the “Hot Cat”—as “Cat on A Hot Tin Roof” is colloquially 
referred to—along with other profit-making Metro pix now in re¬ 
lease. Besides “Gigi” and “Imitation General” one or two others 
are doing well And If, as hoped, “Ben Hur” hits the jackpot, Vo¬ 
gel, must emerge as something of a “wonder boy” in bringing a 
former giant back to stature. 





8 


HCTUmE GROSSES 


PTS^Bff 


Wednesday, October 1,. 1958 


New Pk Boost Del; ‘Yankees* Smash 
$20,000, Tarisienne* Hot 19G, Tiger 
16G, ‘Stranger* Same, ‘Cat* 12G, 5th 


Detroit, Sept. 30. 
New product is going over with 
a hang here currently. “La Parisi¬ 
enne” is hot at the Madison, hut 
♦ Damn Yankees” is the real champ 
at the Michigan, where it is socko. 
‘‘Never Love A Stranger” looks 
great at the Palms. “Harry Black 
and Tiger” is okay at the Fox, 
“How ta Make A Monster” is fairly 
okay at the Broadway-CapitoL 
“Search for Paradise,” in its 
final <34th) week at the Music Hall, 
still is smash. “South Pacific” 
continues strong in the 25th week 
at the United Artists. “Cat on A 
Hot Tin Roof ” at the Adams, is 
rated wow to- its fifth week. 

Estimates for This Week 


Broadway Grosses 

Estimated Total Gross 
This Week ........ .*5*5,500 

(Based on 25 theatres)- 

Last Year ....$589,Off 

(Based on 23 theatres) 

i==^== ■ ■ 

Yankees’ Ragged 
$15,000 in Frisco 


Fox (Fox-Detrolt) (5,100; 90- 
$1.25)—“Harry Black and Tiger” 
(20th) and “Desert Hell” (20th). 
Okay $16,000. Last week, “Man 
With Golden Arm” (UA) and 
“Moon Is Blue” (UA) (reissues), 
$ 12 , 000 . 


Michigan (United Detroit) (4,000; 
$L25-$1.50) — “Damn Yankees” 
(WB) and ‘.‘Handle With Care” 
(M-G). Socko $20,000 or oyer. 
Last week, “Reluctant Debutante” 
(M-G) and ‘Paradise Lagoon” (Col) 
(2d wk), $12,000. 

Palms <UD) <2,901; 90-$125)— 
“Never Love a Stranger” (AA) and 
“Bullwhip” (AA). Great-$16,000. 
Last week, “Gunman’s Walk” (Col) 
and ‘Apache Territory” (Col), $15,- 


Madbon (UD) (1,900; $L25-$1.50) 
—“La Parisienne” (UA) and “Lost 
Lagoon” (Col). Wow $19,000. Last 
week, “Big Country” OJA) (6th wk), 
$ 8 , 000 . 

Braadway-CapHol (UD) (3,500; 
90-$1.25)—“How to Make Monster” 
(AD and “Teenage Caveman” (AD. 
Oke $12,000. Last week, “China 
Doll” (UA) and “Tomahawk Trail” 
(UA), $10,000. 

United Artists (UA) (1,667; $1.25- 
$3)—“South Pacific” (20th) (25th 
wk). Strong $13,600. Last week, 
same. 

Adams (Balaban) (1,700; $1.25- 
$1J50)—“Cat On Hot Tin Roof* 
(M-G) (5th wk). Wham $12,000. 
Last week, $15,000. 

M—^ Mi (SW-Cinerama) 
(1,205; $1.25-12.65) — “Search for 
Paradise” (Cinerama) (34th wk). 
Great $23,500. Last week, $20,000. 

Trans-Lnx Krim (Trans-Lux) 
(1,000; 90-$1.65)—“Case of Dr. 
Laurent” (TL) (3d wk). Good- 
$6,000. Last week, $7,500. 


‘Butters’ Hefty $12,500, 
Toroito; ‘Colonel’ fine. 
I2G, Deb’ lOGin 7t& 

Toronto," Sept 30. 
Only newcomer currently is 
“Once Upon a Horse,” slow at the 
Uptown. “Hie Hunters” and “Me 
and Colonel” are pacing the city 


San Francisco, Sept. 30. 
First-run trade is offish current^ 
ly, most of deluxers showing light¬ 
weight returns. “War of Satellites” 
shapes fair at Golden Gate while 
“Harry Black and Tiger” looms 
slow at the Fox. “Cat on Hot Tin 
Roof’ is still good in fifth Warfield 
Tound. “Damn Yankees” is a'hit 
disappointing but promises to get 
a fairly good take at Paramount 
“Big Country” is okay 1 in fifth 
United Artists stanza. “Me and 
Colonel” looks fine in second week 
at St. Francis. Ace longruimer is 
“Around World in 80 Days,” still 
lively in 92d session at Coronet. 

A hot .spell, heavy legit, baseball 
and football activity are blamed 
for general biz downbeat. 

Estimates for This Week 
Golden Gate £RKO) (2,859; $1.25) 
—“War Of Satellites” (AA) and 
“Attack Of 50-Ft. Woman” (AA). 
Fair $10,000. Last week, “Never 
Love Stranger” (AA) and “Bull- 
whip” (AA), $9,500. 

Fox (FWC) (4,651; $1.25-$1.50)— 
“Harry Black and Tiger” (20th) 
and “Sierra Baron” (20th). Slow 
$9,000. Last week, “Mating Urge” 
(Indie) and ‘‘Untouched” (Indie), 
$12,000 for 8 days. 


Warfield (Loew) (2,656; 90-81.25) 
—"Cat On Hot Tin' Roof’ (M-G) 
(5th wk). Good $9,000 or dose. Last, 
week, $13,400. 

Paramount (Par) (2,646; 90-$1.25) 
— “Damn Yankees” (WB) and 
“Space Children” (Par). Only good | 
$15,000 or less. Last w eek, “Wind j 
Across Everglades” (WB) and 
"Northwest Mounted Police” (WB),! 
$12,000. I 

St Francis (Par) <1,400; $1.25- 
(Cbl) 
week,! 

$15,000. 

Orphean (SW-Cinerama) (1,458; 
$1.75-$2,65) — “Search For Para¬ 
dise” (Ciherama) (29th wk). Mild 


$1.50) — “Me And Colonel” 
(2d Wk). Fine $9,000. Last 


$10,000. Last week, $11,000. 

United Artists (No. Coast) (1,207; 
90-$I25) — “Big Country” (UA) 
(5th wk). Oke $7,500 or close. Last 
week, $8,800. 

Stagedeor (A-R) (440; $1.25- 

$3.00) — “Gigi” <M-G) v (12th wk). 
(Continued on page 18) 


Tariaenne’ Daady 10G, 
L’nDe; ‘Matchmaker’ GG 


Louisville, Sept. 30. 

Newcomers “La Parisienne” at 
the United Artists and “Match¬ 
maker” at the Kentucky, are giv¬ 
ing the downtown wickets some 
lift this week. Perfect early fall 
weather and an ideal .weekend 
brought out the college crowd. 
First-runs too were helped by mil¬ 
itary personnel on weekend leave 
from Ft Knox. “Parisienne” looks 
lively at the Ufiited Artists. 
“Matchmaker” at the Kentucky is 
brisk. “Harry Black and Tiger” at 
the Rialto looks mild. 

Estimates for This Week 

Brown (Fourth Ave.) <1,200; 
|1.25-$2}—“South Pacific” (20th> 
(21st wk). Last Saturday helped 
by influx of college, students, was 
best such day chalked up so far. 
Likely $6,060 looms, same as last 

W Kentucky (Switow) (900; 80-90)— 
"Matchmaker” (Par). Brisk $6,000 
to view. Last week, “Kathy O” 
(U) and “Last of Fast Guns” (U), 
$5,000. 

Mary Anderson (Peop le’s) (1,- 
000; 60-90)—“Indiscreet” (WB) (3d 
wk). Steady $5,500 after second 
week’s $8,000. 

Rialto (Fourth Ave.) (3.00Q: 60- 
90)—“Harry Black and Tiger” 
(20th). Mild $7,500. Last week, 
“Camp Blood Island” (Col) and 
“Curse of Demon” (Col), $9,000. 

United Artists (UA) (3,000; 80- 
90)—‘Xa Parisienne” (UA). Dandy 
$10,000. Last week, “Cat on'Hot 
Tin Roof” (M-G) (4th wk>, $5,500. 


IHatdmiaker’ (K 
$7,000, LC. Ace 

| . Kansas City, Sept. 30. 

! Mild week is in progress her 
currently with some new product 
shaping as a disappointment 
“Raw Wind in Eden” to three Fox 
Midwest houses looks moderate 
while “Dunkirk” at Hie Midland is 
dull. “Matchmaker” at the Para¬ 
mount looms okay. “Never Love a 
Stranger” in four Dickinson thea¬ 
tres Is running at average pace. 
Holdovers continue sharp, “Cat on 
a -Hot Tin Roof” being sock in fifth 
week at the Roxy, while “God 
Created Woman” looks highly sat¬ 
isfactory to 34th week at the 
Kimo. “Windjammer” sails steads 
ily on at fast pace at the Missouri 
in fifth stanza. 

Estimates for TMs Week 
Glen, Dickinson, Shawnee 
Drive-in (Dickinson) (700, 750, 1,- 
100 cars; 900 cars; 75-90)—“Never 
Love Stranger” (AA) and “In Be¬ 
tween Age” (AA) with “The Okla¬ 
homan” (AA) (2d run). Average 
$9,000. Last week, “China Doll” 
(DA) and “Lost Lagoon” <UA) plus 
“Satchmo the Great” (UA), same. 

Kimo (Dickinson) (504; 90-$1.25) 
—“God Created Woman” (Kings) 
(34th wk) holds up at unusuiuly 
good pace to set a record each suc¬ 
ceeding day, for length of run. 
Nice $2,000. Last week, same. 

Midland (Loew) (3,500; 75-90)— 
“Dunkirk” (M-G) and “Andy 
(Continued on page 18) 


to weekend turn a ways in second 
and third weeks. “Reluctant De¬ 
butante” still is big in seventh 
a t a n z a. “Indiscreet” continues 
good to fifth round at the Holly¬ 
wood. 

Estimates for This Week 

Carlton (Rank) (2,518; 75-$1.25) 
—“Me and Colonel” (Col) (3d wk). 
Fine $12,000. Last week, $15,000. J 

Hollywood <FP) (1,080; $1-$L25) 
—“Indiscreet” (WB) (5th wk). 
Good $8,000. Last week, $9^)00. 

Hyland (Rank) (1,057; $1)— 

“Carve Her Name With Pride” 
(Rank) (3d wk). Big $6,000. Last 
week, $8,000. 

Imperial (FP) (3,343; 75-$1.50)— 
“The Hunters” (20th) (2d wk). 
Hefty $12,500. Last week, $17,500. 

International (Taylor) (557; $1)— i 
“King in New York” (IFD) (6th wk). 
Okay $3,000. Last week, $3,500. ! 

Loew’s (Loew) (2,098; 75-$1.25)— 
“Reluctant Debutante” (M-G) (7th 
wk). Big $10,000. Last week, 
$11,500. 

Tivoli (FP) (995; $1.75-$2.40)— 
“South Pacific” (20th) (13th wk). 
Fine $13,000. Last week, same. 

Towne (Taylor) (695; $l-$2.50)— 
“Gigi” (M-G) (10th wk). Swell 
$9,500. Last week, same. 

University (FP) (1,255; $1.50- 
$2.40)—“Seven Wonders of World” 
(Cinerama) <10th wk). Good $10,- 
000 . Last week, same. 

Uptown (Loew) (2,074; 60-$l)— 
“Once Upon a Horse” (U). Light 
$5,500. Last week, “Raw Wind in 
Eden” (U) (2d wk), $6,000. 


Tankees* TaO $13,000 Leads Mpls.; 
Defiant’ Socko 9G, ‘Pacific’ Same 


Minneapolis, Sept. 30. 

Three “big league” Loop new¬ 
comers have 'heen ^sold in such a 
•big. way and have so. much to rec¬ 
ommend them that the public is 
really taking notice, and' so traffic 
downtown has been accelerated. 

“The Defiant Ones” is socko at 
State while “Damn Yankees” 
shares lofty at Radio City. “Harry 
Black and Tiger” looks hefty at 
State. 

< Holdovers again are much to 
evidence. Hard-ticket “Search fol 
Paradise” and “South Pacific” are 
in their 31st and 14th weeks. Iffs 
the fifth big week for “Cat on a 
Hot Tin Roof’ at Orpheum and 
second for the "Camp on Blood 
Island”-“Snorkel” combo, still 
fancy at Lyric. 

Estimates for This Week 

Aeademy (Mann) (947;,, $1.50- 
$2.65) “South Pacific” (20th) <14th 
wk). No complaints here. Okay 
$9,000. Last week, $10,000. 

Century (SW-Cinerama) (1,150; 
$1.75-$2.65) “Search for Paradise” 
(Cinerama) (31st wk). Announce¬ 
ment of final eight weeks is stimu¬ 
lating biz. Looks oke at $8,000. Last 
week, $9,000. 

Gopher (Berger) (1,000; 85-90) 
“Reluctant Debutante” (M-G) (2d 
wk). Much-liked pic not doing as 
well as hoped. Okay $4,000. Last 
week, $5,000. 


Lyric (Par) (1,000; 85-90) “Camp 
on Blood Island” (Col) and “Snor¬ 
kel” (Col) (2d wk). Real boxoffke 
combo. Fancy $4,500. Last week, 
$7,500. 

Radio City (Par) (4,100; 90-$l£5) 
“Damn Yankees” (WB!. Still an¬ 
other advanced admission pic but 
public’s pouring in. Theatre bows 
out of eidstenfle after this one’s 
three-week run. Tall $13,000. Last 
week, “Matchmaker” (Par), $8,000 
at 85e-90c scale. 

KKO Orpheum (RKO) (2,800; 90- 
$1£0) “Cat on Hot Tin Roof” 
(M-G) (5th wk). Stout $9,000. Last 
week, $11,000. 

RKO Pan (RKO) (1,800; 75-85) 
“Female Animal” CU) and “Last of 
Fast Gtins” (U). Satisfactory $4,000. 
Last week, “Law and Jake Wade” 
(M-G) and “Handle With Care” 
(M-G), $5,000. 

State (Par) <2,200; 85-90) “Harry 
Black and Tiger” (20th). Well liked 
but onto light $5,000. Last week, 
“Tank Force” (Col), $6,000. 

Suburban World (Mann) <800; 
85) “Tides of Passion” (Indie). 
Good $2,000, Last week, “Demo¬ 
niac” (Indie), $1,400; 

World (Manri) (400; 85-$1.25) 
“Defiant Ones” (UA). Went limit 
in exploiting'this- one. Socko $9,000. 
is the answer. Last week, “Street¬ 
car Named Desire” (20th) (reissue) 
(2d wk), $4,500. in 6 days. 


Tankees* Robust 11G, ‘Cat* 5th 
‘Country* Mo $10,000 Tops Cincy; 


Key City Grosses 

Estimated Total Gross 
TMs Week ...... $2,586,500 

(Based on 23 cities and 244 
theatres, chiefly flrsz runs , in- 
'eluding N. Y.) 

Last Year .$2,456,300 

(Based on 22 cities and 248 
theatres .) 


Tankees* Wham 


14G Paces Prov. 


Providence, Sept. 30. : 

It’s those ‘Damn Yankees” even! 
at the boxoffice here, to givathe; 
Majestic a smash session and cur¬ 
rent leadership. Holding the run¬ 
ner-up spot Is the State’s “La Par- j 
isienne,” with nice take. RKO i 
Albee Is slow with “War of the 
Satellites.” “The Whole Truth’.’ ; 
shapes drab at the Strand. 1 
Estimates for This Week 
Albee (RKO) <2,200; 65-80) — 
“War of Satellites” (AA) and “At¬ 
tack of 50-Ft Woman” (AA). Mild 
I $5,000 expected. Last week, ‘‘Raw 
I Wind In Eden!!. <U) and “Oregon 
Passage” (AA), $6,000, 


Majestic <SW) (2,200; 90-$L25)— 
“Damn Yankees” (WB). Heavy 
early play building to around sock 
$14,000. Last week, “Oklahoma” 
(20th) and “Carousel” (20th) re¬ 
issues), $7,000. 

State (Loew) <3,200; 65-80)—“La 
Parisienne” (UA) and “The Care¬ 


less Years” (UA). Snappy $10,000. 
Last week, “Cat On Hot Tin- Roof” 
(M-G) (4th wk), $8,000. 

Strand (National Realty) (2400; 
65-80)—"Whole Truth” (Col).- and 
“Ghost of the China Sea” (Col). 
Drab $3,500. Last week, "Match¬ 
maker” (Par) and “As Young As 
We Are” (Par), $6,000. 


Tankees’ Big Nobels 
. Pitt at Hotey $16,000; 
‘Colonel’ Light $6,500 

Pittsburgh, Sept. 30. 
“Damn Yankees” at the Stanley 
is the big noise this week, with 
“South Pacific” also making a big 
dent in the finale at the Nixon be¬ 
fore legit season opens there. “Cat 
On Hot Tin Roof’ is winding up big 
at Penn. “Windjammer” Is inch¬ 
ing ahead a little at the Warner. 
“Me and the Colonel” is a big dis¬ 
appointment at the Harris. “Harry 
Black and the Tiger” is going no¬ 
where at the Fulton. 


Estimates for This Week 

Fulton (Shea) (1,700;. 80-$125)— 
‘Harr^ Black and Tiger” (20th). 
Won’t do much more than lean 
$4,000. Last week, “Tale of Two 
Cities” (Rank), $4,500. 

Guild (Green) (500; 99-$l-23>— 
“Loser Takes All” (DCA) and “Cast 
a Dark Shadow” (DCA). Good 
$2,500. Last week, “Demoniac” 
(UMPO) (3d wk), $1,800. - 

Harris (Harris) (2,165; 80-$L25) 
—“Me and the Colonel” (Col). 
Kaye hasn’t been b.o, locally in a 
long time. Doesn’t look much 
more than mild $6,500. Last week, 
“Tank Force” (Col), $5,000. 

Nixen (Rubin) <1,500; $1.25-$3>— 
“South Pacific” (20th) (25th wk). 
Closing down Saturday night (4) 
after six-month engagement on ac¬ 
count of legit season. Last-minute 
rush boosting to big $11,000. Last 
week, $9,000. 

Penn (UA) (3,300; 99-$1.50)— 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof” (M-G) (5th 
wk). Had to' come out Sept. 29 on 
account of locked booking for “Big 
Country” (UA) Oct. 9 and necessity 
of windup week hit oke $8,000 to 
make it close to $90,000, sensational 
for*32-day stay. 

Squirrel Hill (SW) (900; 99-$125) 
—“Law and Disorder” (Cont). Fine 
notices byt won’t do more than 
fairish $2,200. Last week, “Match¬ 
maker” (Par) (6th wk), $2,500. 

Stanley (SW) <3,800; 80-11.25)— 
“Damn Yankees” (WB). Crix gave 
it a fine sendoff. Fancy $16,000 
or over, holds. Last week,-“Never 
Love Stranger” (AA), $7,000 In 6 

^Tinier '(SW-Cinerama) (1,500; 
$1.20-$2.40)—“Windjammer” (NT) 
(3d wk). Moving up slowly but 
sorely, with advance sale growing 
and klddto trade getting better, 
both good signs. Present out¬ 
look is for almost $10,000, good. 
Last week, $9,500. 


Cincinnati, Sept 30. 

Three brisk newcomers and con¬ 
tinuing sturdy life of "Cat on Hot 
Tin Roof” at flagship Albee are 
bolstering Cincy film biz this week. 
Fresh product outlook has “Damn 
Yankees” in lead with lively take 
at Palace. “Big Country” shapes 
socko at Keith’s. “China Doll” is 
okay at smaller Grand. “Cat” bids 
for a moveover and sixth frame on 
main line. Long-runners “South 
Pacific” and “Search for Paradise” 
retain strength as their engage¬ 
ments roll on. 

. Estimates for This Week 

Albeq. (RKO) (3,100; 90-$1^0)— 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof” (M-G) (5th 
wk>: Sturdy $9,500 after. $11,000 in 
fourth frame. 

Capitol (SW - Cinerama) (1,376; 
$1.20-$2.65) — “Search for Para¬ 
dise” (Cinerama) (43d. wk). Close 
to last week’s swell $12,000 with 
windup here three weeks away. 

Grand (RKO) (1,400; 75-$1.10)— 
“China Doll” (UA) and “Ft. Mas¬ 
sacre”. (UA). Oke $7,000. Last 
week, “Party Crashers” (Par) and 
“As Young As We Are” (Par), 
$5,000. 

Keith’s (Shor) (1,500; 90-S1.25)— 
“Big Country” (UA). Socko $10,000. 
Holds. Last week, “At War With 
Army” (Indie) (reissue), $6,000. 

Palace (RKO) (2,600; »0-$1.25)— 
“Damn Yankees” (WB). Lively 
$11,000. Last week, “Dunkirk” 
(M-G) and “Tarzan’s Fight for 
Life” (M-G), at 75-$1.10 scale, 
$ 6 , 000 . 

Valley (Wiethe) (1,300; $1.50- 
$2.50)—"South Pacific” (20th) (23d 
wk). Hugging on at okay $7,500 for 
third straight week. 


‘Defiant’ Whopping 31G 
In Hob; ‘Desire’ Record 
18G,‘Colonel’Hep 13G 

Boston, Sept 30. 
Film biz is building here, with 
overflow crowds and SRO prevail¬ 
ing at some houses. “Defiant Ones” 
is standout, with .a rousing total at 
the Memorial. “Time of Desire” is 
breaking house record at the 
Capri. ‘‘Me and Colonel” is sock at 
the Exeter. V 

Paramount and Fenway comb# 
went to oldies with “At War With 
Army,” results beipg barely good. 
Hprdticket long runners forged 
ahead, with “Gigi” hotsy in fifth 
and “South Pacific” torrid to 25th 
■session. “Windjammer” also was 
strong to its fifth round. 

Estimates for This Week 


_(BAG) (1,371; 75*$1.50)— 

“Matchmaker” (Par) (2d wk); Neat 
$12,060. Last week, $14#00, below 
hopes. ■ 

Beacon Hill (Sack) (678; 90- 
$1.50) — “Night Heaven: Fell” 
(Kings! <5th wk>. Hotsy' $7,500. 
Last week* ditto. • * 

B a rt on (SW- Cinerama) (1,554; 
$L25-$2.«5)— “Windjammer”. (NT) 
(6th wk). Fifth week was $21,000, 
Capri (Sack) (1450; 9Ch$1.50)— 
“Time Of Desire” (Jaiius).'Record 
breaking $18,000. Last week, 
“Night Heaven Fell” (Kings) (4th 
wk), $5,000. - , 

Exeter (to die) (1,300; 75-$1.25)— 
“Me .And Colonel” (Col) (2d wk). 
First week was 1 sock $13,000. 

Fenway (NET) (1,376; 60-$1.10) 
—“At War With Army” (Indie) (re¬ 
issue) and “Hong Kong Affair” 
(AA). Good $4,000. Last week. 
“China Doll” (UA) and “Ride Out 
For Revenge” (UA), same. 

, Gary (Sack) (1,340; $1.25-$3>— 
“Gigi” (M-G) (5th wk). Wham $22,- 
000 , ahead of last week’s $19,000. 

Kenmore (Indie) (700; 75r$1.25) 
—“Constant Husband” (BL) and 
“Last Holiday” (Rank) (5th wk) T 
Nice $5,000. Last week, $6,200. 

Memorial (RKO) (3,000; 6*41.10) 
—‘Defiant Ofces” (UA) and T ‘Fort 
Massacre” (UA). Wham $31,000 & 
over. Last weekf “Twilight For 
Gods” (U) and “Saga of Hemp 
Brown” (U) (2d wk), $7,500. 

Metropolitan (NET) (4,357; 7 & 
$1.10)—“Harry Black And Tiger* 
(20th) and “Wolf Dog” (20th). Poor 
$7,000. Last week, “Streetcar 
Named Desire” (reissue) and “Dia¬ 
mond Safari” (20th), $13,000. 

Mayflower (ATC) (683; 75-$1.25) 
—“Case of Dr, Laurent” (T-L) (7th 
wk). Holding good $3,500. Last 
week, same. 

Paramount (NET) <2,857: 70- 
$140)—“At War With Army 1 ' (re- 
release) and “Hong Kong Affair” 
(AA). Lean $9,000. • Last week. 
“China Doll” (UA) and "Ride Out 
For Revenge” (UA), ditto. 

Pilgrim (ATC) (1,000; 60-$1,10>— 
“Halls of Montezuma” and “Shores 
of Tripoli” (reissues). Oke $4,500, 
Last week, “Key” (Col) and s Gdd- 
en Age of Comedy” (DCA), $6,00* 
Saxon (Sack) (1,000; $1.5*$3J0) 
(Continued on page 18) 





Wednesday, October l d 1958 


UfcuUTt 


PICTURE GROSSES 


NEW PRODUCT PERKS UP CHI 

•---:--- *-'■ ■ - -- : --—---— 

1H.0.S HamperB’way; Yankees Plus 
Stage Boff $97,000, Defiant’ Giant 
39G, 'Cat’ Rousing $158,000 in 2d 


LA. in Nosedive But Yankees Fine 
19G; Tiger So-So $14,500, ‘Cat’ Brisk 
14G, 5th, Days Wow W/fi for 93d 


Los Angeles, Sept. 30. < 
L.A. firstnins are taking a nose¬ 
dive this session, 'with outlook for 
the smallest coin take in many ! 
months. “Damn Yankees” shape# 
fairly brisk $19,000 in three houses. 
“Harry Black and Tiger” looks only 
so-so $14,500 for four situations. 
“Badlanders” is just fair With 
$11,000 for three houses. 

Splurge of reissues also is con¬ 
tributing to the offish showing this 
week. “Cat on Hot Tin Roof" still 
is strong at $14,000 in fifth stanza 
at Fox Wilshire. “Big Country? 
shapes steady in sixth round at 
Warner Beverly. 

On hard-ticket front, “South 
Pacific” looks tall $17,400 In 17th 

S eek at Egyptian, “Windjammer” 
solid $17,000 for 25th round at 
Chinese, “Gigi” looks strong $17/- 
000 in 12th Hollywood Paramount 
stanza while “Around World in 80 
Days” is smash $14,500 in 92d<ses-. 
sion at. Carthay. "Seven Wonders 
of World” wound 66-week run Sun¬ 
day (28) with sockeroo $35,700 in- 
final eight days. “South Seas Ad¬ 
venture* replaces at Warner Holly¬ 
wood Oct. 1. 

Estimates for This Week 
Hawaii, State, Rite (G&S-UATC- 
FWC) (1,106; 2,404;1,320{ 90*1.50) 
—“Badlanders” (M-G), “Lady 
Godiva Rides Again” (Stern) (Ha¬ 
waii, State), “Kathy O* ” (U) (M.O.) 
(Bits). Fair $11,000. Last week, 
Hawaii . with .HUlstreefc “Ride 
Crooked Mile” (U), “Kathy O’” 
(U), $6,000. State, “Andy Hardy 
Cornea Home” (M-G), “Tarzan’s 
Fight for Life” (M-G) (2d wk), 
$2,400. Bits .with Los Angeles, 
Loyola, Hew. Fox, “Night Heaven 
Fell” (Kings), “She Played With 
Fire” (Col), $15,000. 

* Paatages, Los Angeles, Loyola, 
Uptown (RKO-FWC) (2,815; 2,007; 
1496; 1,715; 90-$1.50> — “Harry 
mackand the Tiger” (20th) and 
“Showdown at Boot Hill” (20th). 
So-oo $14400 or near. Last week 
Pantages. “Man in Gray Flannel 
Suit” (20th), “There's No Business 
Like Show Business” (20th) (ro- 
Issues), $1,900. Uptown with Down¬ 
town, Iris, “Mating Urge” (Indie), 
“Naked in Sun” (Indie), $10,500. 

Downtown Paramo not. Wfltet, 
Yocno (ABPT-SW-FWC) - (3,600; 
1344; 826; -904150), — “Damn 

Yankees” (WB) and “Hondo” (WB) 
(retesuo, D’n Par only). .Brisk 
$19,000 or near. Last week, “Wind 
Afcrooe Rvergladea” (WBV $13,100. 

HUUmf (RKO) (2,752; W41.50) 
—“Creatures of Jungle” (Indie) 
and “Boast of Paradise Isle^ (Indie) 
(retesues>. SUm $2,700. 

OrphoCT. Hollywood (Mel 
t*n-FWC) (2413; 756; 90-$ 
c Trapi»” (UA) and “Vem Crus” 
(UA) (reissues). Dim $5,860. List 
Week, "Hell Drivers” (Rank), “Rob¬ 
bery Under Arms” (Rank). $4,700. 

Downtown (SW) (1,737; 904140) 
—“Don’t Go Near Water” (M-G) 
and “Operation Mad Ball” (Col) 
(reissues). Slight $2,700. v 
Me .(FWC) (825; 904140) — 
“Meting Urge” (Indie) (2d wkX and 
“Wind Acroa# Everglades” (WB) 
(M.O.) (1st wk). Light $2,400. 

New F#x (FWC) (765; 9041.$0>— 
“Night Heaven Fell” (Kinga) (2d 
wk) and. “Mile. Striptease” (Indie) 
(reissue). Qke $3,000. 
i Few Star (UATG) (868; 9041 SO) 
— Streetcar Named Desire” (20th) 
(reissue) (2d wk); Lusty $3,100. 
jLast week, $9,400. 

' Fen Wltehlre (FWC) (2496; 90- 
140)—“Cat On Hot Tin Roof” 
Jth wk). Strong $14,000. Last 
Week $15,100. 

F« Beverly (FWC) (1,170; $140- 
$2)—“Reluctant Debutante” (M-G) 
(6th wkX Perky $5,000/Last week^ 
$7,400. •' ' ‘ 

Warner Beverly (SW) (1,612; 
$1.25-$2) — “Big Country” (UA) 
(6th wk). Nice $2,800. Last week, 
$3,300. . 

Hollywood Paramount (F&M) 
(1,468; $1.65-$3) — “Gigi” (M-G) 
(12th wk). Strong $17,000. Last 
Week, ditto. 

Egyptian (UATC) (1,392; $1.65- 
$3.30) — “South Pacific” (20th) 
(17th wk). Tall $17,400. Last week,. 
$17,000. 

Chinese (FWC) (1,408; $1.75- 
$340)—“Windjammer” (NT) (25th 
wk). Bulky $17,000. Last week, 
$19,800. 

Carthay (FWC) (1,135; $1.75- 
$3.50)—“Around World” (UA) (93d 
wk). Smash $14,500. Last week,: 

name. 


& 


•Yankees’NSH $7,000, 
Seattle; £ Caf Fat 5</ 2 G 

Seattle, Sept. 30. 

Bis is sagging in current round 
here, with newcomers being especi¬ 
ally light. EFen “Damn Yankees’* 
looms barely good at Orpheum. 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof” still is line, 
however. In fifth Music Box round. 
“Big Country” shapes okay in fifth 
session at Paramount. Elsewhere, 
takings are mostly very disappoint¬ 
ing. 

Estimates for This Week 
. Bine Mouse (Hamrick), 800; 
$1.5042.50)—“South Pacific” (20th) 

, (18th wk). Swell $7400. Last week, 
($7,100. 

Coliseum (Fox-Evergreen) (1470; 
t0-$1.50)—“Harry Black and Tiger” 
(20th) and “Villa” (20th). Mild $6.- 
000. Last week, “Blood Island'* 
(Col) and “Snorkel” (CoU^ $9400, 

Fifth Avenue. (Fox-Evergreen) 
(2,500; 9041.50)—“Gun Runners” 
(UA) and “China DolT OJA). Dull 
$6,000. Last week, “Me ana 
Colonel” (Col) and 'Played with 
“ re” (Col), $7400. 

Musfe Box (Hamrick) (850; 90- 
$1.50)—“Cat on Tin Roof” (M-G). 
(5th wk). Fine $5,500. Last week, 
$6,300. 

Mtisia Hall (Hamrick) (2400; $0- 
$1.50)—“Wind Acroaa Everglade#* 
(WB)“ and “Ride Crooked Trail' 
(U). Blah $4,000. Last week, “Re¬ 
luctant Debutante” (M-G> and 
“Wink of Eye” (UA), $6400 in 9 
days. 

Orpheum (Hamrick) (2,700; 90- 
$140)—“Damn Yankees” (WB) and 
“Saga of Hemp Brown” (U>. Not so 
hot at $7,000. Last week, “LIttlest 
Hobo” (AA) and “Bull Whip” (AA>, 
$5,300. 

Paramount (Fox-Evergreen) (3,- 
107; 9041.50)—“Big Country” (UA). 
(5th wk). Okay $5,500. Last week, 
$ 6400 . _ 

Tiger’ Good 12G, 
St L; Kathy 1% 

. St. Louis, Sept. 30. 

“Cat on Hot Tin Roof? has 
moved into s fifth big week St 
Loew’s. A Couple of ether hold¬ 
overs, ^Windjammer” at the Am¬ 
bassador and “South Pacific” at the 
Pageant are doing nicely too. New 
pie ?Kathy-0” at the huge Fox, 
looks okay. “Harry Black and 
Tiger” at the St Louis shape# 
good. “A Man Escaped” at the 
Apollo Art is fast. “The Match¬ 
maker," on moveover at two 
houses, looms oke. 

Estimates fer This Week 

Ambassador (Cinerama), (1,400; 
$14042.40)—“Windjammer” (NT) 
(5th wk). Big $9,000. Last week; 
$ 11 , 000 . 

Apollo Art (Grace) (700; 90- 

f l45>—“A Man Escaped” (Indie), 
ast $2,500. Last week, “Infidelity" 
(indie), $2,500. . 

Fox (Arthur) (5,db0; $5-90) — 
“Katfay-O” (U) and “Ride a 
Crooked Trail” CU). Okay $15,000. 
Last week, ’The Hunters” (20th) 
and “Sierra Baron” (20th), same. 

Leewte (Loew) (3,200; 6040)— 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof’ CM-G) (5th 
wk). BiF $10,000 or over. Last 
week, $12,000.- 

Orpheum (Loew) (1400; 0040)-^ 
“Dunkirk” (M-G) and “Andy Hardy 
Comes Home” (M-G). Mild $7,000. 
Last week, “Decks Ran Red” (M-G) 
and “Brothers Rico” (Indie), 
$5,000. 

Pageant (Arthur) (1,000; $1.80- 
$245) — “South Pacific” (20th) 
(24th wk). Good $7,000. Last week, 
same. 

Richmond (Arthur) (1,000; 90)— 
“Matchmaker” (Par). Light $2,000. 
Last week, “Your Past Is-Showing” 
(Rank) (3d wk), $1,200. 

St. Louis (Arthur) (3,600; 60-75) 
—“Harry Black and Tiger” (20th) 
and “Flaming Frontier” (20th). 
Good $13,000. Last week, “Match¬ 
maker” (Par) and “As Young As 
We Are” (Indie), ditto. 

Shady Oak (Arthur) <560; 90)— 
“Matchmaker” (Par). Neat $3,000. 
Last week, “Your Past Is Showing” 
(Rank) (3d Wk), $1,900. 



. Chicago, Sept. 30. 

Seasonal weather should abet a 
flock of new entries and sturdy 
longruns to give Loop deluxers real 
action this round. Of the newcom¬ 
ers, “Damn Yankees” expects a 
socko $19,000 at> the United Artists 
while “Certain Smile” is headed 
for a nice $27,000 at the Oriental. 
“Me and the Colonel” is rated a 
boffo $24,000 at the Esquire. 

Preem sesh of “Wind Across 
Everglades” and “Bullwhip” at 
Garrick should collar a big $10,000. 

Holdover heavies Include “Cat on 
Hot Tin Roof,” rated smash in fifth 
frame at the Chicago. “Defiant 
Ones”is solid in seventh ses¬ 
sion at the Roosevelt. “Big Coun¬ 
try” is rated okay 'in sixth week 
at State-Lake. 

Woods’ second round of “Harry 
Black and the Tiger” is shaping 
fair. “White Wilderness” is big 
in third stanza at the Loop while 
third week of “Your Past is Show¬ 
ing” shapes dandy at the Surf. 

Of the hard-ticket pix, the new 
Cinerama pic, “South Seas Adven¬ 
ture,” posted a great '$344)00 in 
initial frame- at McVickers. “Gigi” 
is sturdy in 12th Harris canto, with 
“Windjammer” ending Opera 
House run strongly after 14 weeks. 
“South Ptcific” is fine in 27th 
frame at the Harris. “Around 
World In 80 Days” looks smash in 
78th week at Todd’s Cinestage. 

Estimate# for ThhrWeek 

Carnegie (Telem't) (485; $L25)— 
“Pepote” (UMPO) and “Marianne 
of My Youth” (UMPO). Soft $2,800. 
Last wfeek, sub-runs. - 

Cfcteag# (B&K) (3,900; 9041-80) 
—“Cat on Hot Tin Rdof ’ (M-G) 
(8th wk). Sock $28,000. Last week, 
$33400. 

EMpiro (H&E Balaban) (1,350; 
$140)—“Me and Colonel” (Gol). 
Smbsh $24400 or near. Last week, 
“The Whole Truth” (Col) (2d wk), 
$7,000. , 

Garrick (B&K) (850; 9041.25)— 
“Wind Across Everglades” (WB) 
and,“Bullwhip” (AA). Big $10,090. 
Last week, “Camp on Blood Island” 
(Col) and “Snorkel” (Col) (2d wk), 
$7400. ' 

Harris (Indie) (984; $14543)— 
“Gigi” (M-G) (12th Wk). Steady 
$16400. Last week, $17,000. 

L#op (Telem't) (606; 904140)— 
“White Wilderness” (BY) (3d wk). 
Smash $9,500. Last week, $19,000. 

MeYlekers (JL&S) (1,580; $145- 
$340)—“South Pacific” (20th> 
(27th wk). Fine $21,000. Last week, 
$23,000. 

Monroe (Jovan) (1.000; 65-90}— 
"Bad Girl” (DCA) and “Wolf Pack” 
(DCA). Oke at $5,000. Last week, 
“Ride Out for Revenge” (UA) and 
“Steel Bayonet” (UA), $5,400. 

Opera House (Natl Th.)* (3,100: 
904340) — “Windjammer” (NY 
(Continued on page 18) 


TACIF1C’ ROBUST 7G, 
PORT 4 TEGER* $6,000 

Portland; Ore., Sept. 30. 

Biz to dragging along tn# main 
stem currently but some holdovers 
are strong. “South Pacific” moves 
into a hyr 18th week at the Broad¬ 
way. ’’Gigi” stay# solid in sixth 
round at the Guild. “Damn Yan¬ 
kees” at Liberty and “Me and the 
Colonel” at Fox are major disap¬ 
pointments, the former being only 


Estimates tor Thl# eek 
Broadway (Parker) (890; $1.50- 
$240) — “South Pacific” (20th) 
(ISth wk). Big $7,000. Last week, 

sen) (1,536; $14140) 
—“Me and Colonel” (Col> and “She 
Played With Fire” (Col). NSH $6,- 
000. Last week, “Whole Truth” 
. (Col) and “Lift Begins At 17’ 

UCol), $2400. 

k r.«q d trndie) (400; $1.2543)— 
(Continued on page 18) 


Estimates Are Net 

Film gross estimates as re¬ 
ported herewith from the vari» 
ous key cities, are net; Le* 
without usual tax. Distrib¬ 
utors share on net take, when 
playing percentage, hence the 
estimated figures are net in¬ 
come. 

The parenthetic admission 
prices, however, as indicated. 
Include the U. S. amusement 
tax 


•Yankees’ Hep $16,000, 
Cleve.; ’’figer’ Mild 7G 

Cleveland, Sept. 30. 

“ Damn Yankees,” hitting a good 
total opening week at the Allen, 
is getting a holdover but no home- 
run biz as top entrant of a rather 
mild session here. “Cat on Hot Tin 
Roof” is still torrid in second week 
of a moveover-. engagement at the 
Stillman. “Harry Black and Tiger” 
looms very light on opening round 
at the Hipp while “La Parisienne” 
also shapes disappointing for ini¬ 
tial frame at the State. 

“ Estimates for This Week 

Alien (S-W) (3,800; 75-$1.25)— 
"Damn Yankees” (WB). Good $16,- 
000 or near. Last week, “Winds 
Acrdfcs Everglades” (WB), $8,000 
in 4 days. 

Continental Art (Art Theatre 
Guild) (850; $1.25)—“Light Across 
Street.” (Indie). Fair $2,100. Last 
week, “12 Angry Men” (UA) and 
“Marty” (UA) (reissues), $800 in 5. 
days. 

Heights Art (Art Theatre Guild) 
(925; $145)—"Case of Dr. Laurent” 
(Indieh Oke $3,800. Last week, 
‘Age o£ Infidelity” (Indie), $1,700. 

Hippodrome (Telem’t) (3,700; 75- 
$l)-^Harry Black and Tiger" (20th). 
Sad $7,000. Last week, “Here to 
Eternity” (Col) (reissue) and “Case 
Against Brooklyn” (Col), $9,000. 

Lower Mall (Community) (500; 
7040)—“Diary of Bad Girl” (Indie) 
and “Slaves” (Indie). Oke $2,500. 
Last week, “Girl in Bikini” (Indie), 
$ 2400 . 

Ohio CLoew) (1,244; $145-$2.50) 
—“South Pacific” (20th) (24th wk). 
Thin $6,000. Last week, $7,000. 

Palaee (SW-CInerama) (1,523: 
$I45-$2.40)— “Search For Para¬ 
dise” (Cinerama) (6th wk). Wobbly 
$11,800 after $12,500 in fifth. 

State (Loew) (3,500; 70-90)— **La 
Parisienne” (UA). Dull $7,000. Last 
week, “Reluctant Debutante'* 
(M-G), $9,000. 

Stillman (Loew) (2,700; 70-90)— 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof” (M-G) (m.o.) 
(2d wk), Hotsy $9,000. Last week, 
$ 10 , 000 . 

Defiant’Hot 30G, 
PhiBy; ‘Cat’ 45G 

Philadelphia, Sept 30. 

New product is giving mldtojm 
business a shot In the arm this 
session. The boxoffice for ace pix 
was not dampened by the terrific 
downpour 4>ver the weekend. “Cat 
on Hot Tin Roof’ la hottest thing 
in town with a giant tak# at the 
Stanley while “Defiant Ones” 
shape# equally as big with a wow 
session at the smaller Stanton. 
“Reluctant Debutante” is smash, 
too, at the Yiking. “Gigi” looms as 
best of longruns being big In 14th 
stanza at the Boyd. 

Estimates for This Week 

Arcadia (S&S) (536; 9941.80)— 
“Decks Ran Red” (M-G) (2d wk). 
Thin $5,000. Last week, $6,000. 

Boyd (SW) (1,480; $14542.75)— 
“Gigi” (M-G) (14th wk). Big $9,000. 
Last week, same. 

Fox (National) (2450; 6541.49)— 
"Man With Golden Arm” CUA) and 
“Moon I# Blue” (UA) (reissues). 
Okay $7,000 or near. Last week, 
“Fiend Who Walked West” (20th), 
$9,000.- 

Goldman (Goldman) (2,250; 65- 
$1.49) — “Terror From Beyond 
Space” (UA) and “Curse Faceless 
Man” (UA). Fair $7,500. Last 
week, “Gun Runners” (UA), same. 

Midiown (Goldman) (1,000; $2- 
$2.75) — “South Pacific” (20th) 
(27th ' wk). Fancy $8,500. Last 
week, $8,300. 

Randolph (Goldman) (1450; 65- 
$1.80)—“Me and Colonel” (Col) (3d 
wk)* Okay $9,000. Last week, 
$ 12 , 000 . 

Stanley (SW) (2,900; 9941-80)— 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof’. (M-G). 
Whopping $45,000. Last week, “Rig 
Country” (UA) (7th wk), $8,000. 

Stanton (SW) (1,483; 9941.80)— 
“Defiant Ones” (UA). Mighty $30,- 
(Continued on page 18) 


•f Broadway first-run theatres ap¬ 
pear to be suffering from too many 
prolonged engagements currently, 
this situation even extending to 
some hard-ticket pix. The few new 
bills indicate that fresh fare is4he 
crying need to hypo trade over the 
usual pre-October lull. Very rainy 
Saturday did not cut Into trade at 
many houses while the much cool¬ 
er weather starting Sunday (28) 
was rated a plus factor. 

Reopening the Roxy with a new 
stageshow policy is paying off in 
spades. “Damn Yankees,” plus a 
straight stagebill (sans iceskaters), 
is headed for a giant $97,000 in 
first week. House had been shut¬ 
tered for nearly a week to re-seat 
with something like the old capa¬ 
city of 5,705, and re-arrange the 
stage. 

“Defiant Ones;” of course, is th# 
ace straight-filmer with a mighty 
$39,000 in prospect for the opening 
stanza at the Victoria. It appears 
set for a longrun. Most surprising 
arty theatre entry was “Pather 
Panchali,” prize - winning Indian 
film, which hit a new house record 
of $7,200 opening week at the Fifth 
Avenue Cinema. Other arty entry, 
“•Town Like Alice,” was just good 
$5,200 on initial week at the Sut¬ 
ton. 

Ace holdover is “Cat on Hot Tin 
Roof” with'stageshow, with a big 
$158,000 in prospect for second 
session at the Music Hall. It’s hold¬ 
ing over, naturally. “Harry Black 
and Tiger” is down to fair $21,000 
in second round at the Paramount 
where “Barbarian and Geisha” 
opens tomorrow night at a special 
preem. Second round of “Crime 
and Punishment” still was great 
at $8,000 at the Paris. 

“Raw Wind in Eden” looks to 
dip modest $15,000 in second 
fraine at the State. “South Sea 
Adventure” was off at the Warner. 
“Big Country” moves into the 
Astor"today (Wed.) after “Vikings” 
heid at big $11,006 or better in 
16th session. “Onionhead” opens 
today (Wed.), at the Capitol after 
three laggard weeks of “D unkir k.” 

Estimates for This Week 

. Astor (City Inv) (1,094; 7542)— 
*'Big Country (UA). Opens today 
(Wed.). Last week, “Vikings” (UA) 
(18th wk), was okay $11,000 or vnear 
for six days after $17,000 for 15th 
week and a great longrun. 

Little Carneciq Carnegie) 
(550; $1.2541.80)—“Matchmaker” 

(Par) (8th wk). The seventh round 
ended yesterday (Tues.* was fin# 
$6,200 after $9400 in sixth week. 

Baronet (Reade) (430; $1.25- 
$1.70)—“Premier May” (Cont) (3d 
wk). Second week ended Monday 
(29) was oke $5,100. First was 

* 7 c£!itol (Loew)' (4,820; $1-$2.5Q) 
—“Onionhead" (WB). Opens today 
(Wed.). In ahead, “Dunkirk” (M-G) 
(3d wk), was slow $12,000 after $18,- 
000 for second. 

Criterion (Moss) (1,671; $1.80- 
$3.50) — “South Pacific” (20th) 
(28th-wk). The 27th round finished 
Sunday (28) was nice $24,200 after 
$27,000 in 26th week. “Old Man 
and Sea” (WB> opens Oct. 7. 

Fine Arte (Davis) (468; 90-$1.80) 
’•Me and Colonel" (Col) (6th wk). 
The fifth session completed Mon¬ 
day (28) was great $10,000 after 
$12,500 in fourth week. Stays on. 

Guild (Guild) (450; $1-$1.75>— 
“Hot Spell” (Par) (2d wk). This 
stanza winding today (Wed), looks 
like stout $8,000 after $12,900 
opening week. Holds. 

Mayfair (Indie) (1,736; 7941-80) 
—“Wind Across Everglades” (WB) 
(3d wk). This round winding up 
today (Wed.) looks to sag to lean 
$6,500. Second was $8,000. “Street¬ 
car Named Desire” (20th) (reissue) 
is due in next, and soon, 

Normandie (Trans-Lux) (592; 95- 
$1.80)—“White Wilderness” (BV) 
(8th wk). The seventh frame ended 
Monday (29) was okay $5,500 after 
$6,500 for sixth week. Continues, 
with “Rocket To Calabuch” (T-L) 
due Oct. 7. 

Palace (RKO) (1,042; $l-$3)—. 
“Bridge on River Rwai" (Col) (42d 
wk). The 41st week ended yester¬ 
day (Tues.) was good $20,100 after 
$21,700 for 40th round. “Roots of 
Heaven” (20th) opens Oct. 15. Fact 
that “Kwai” opened last Saturday 
in Brooklyn is hurting final weeks 

fa< Odeon (Rank) (813; 9041-80)— 
(Continued on page 16) 



n> 







AND WAR 


t i ! 


m 


Mi 


AND WAR 


Up* 



AND WAR 






■ 

■g&> ^ 


AND WAR 


COLOR by DE LUXE 
DnemaScopE 


'20th is with it 
in 1958-59/ 
Get with 20th1 








12 


INTEMNATIONAi; 


MBaj e ff 


*VAW*TV / f* 

-• St* Amrtffi'a StM*. TrHf- 


West End Buoyant; Defiant’ Mighty 
$17,NO, ‘Carry On’ 11G, ‘Smile’ Fast 
11G, Indiscreet’ Great 12G in 6th 


London, Sept. 23. 

The West End first-run scene re¬ 
tains its buoyant appearance ■with 
standout returns being chalked up 
by a number of new and holdover 
bills. Pacing the newcomers is be¬ 
ing "The Defiant Ones,” with a 
mighty $17,000 or near likely at 
the Odeon, Leicester Square open¬ 
ing round. Another stout opener 
is the British-made “Carry On 
Sergeant,” which shapes fine $11,- 
000 in its first week at the Plaza. 

“The Proud Hebei” made a more 
modest start-at the Empire, with an 
average $12,000 on opening week. 
"Rockets Galore” at the Odeon, 
Marble Arch is heading for an 
okay $7,800 in initial stanza. "A 
Certain Smile” is shaping to get a 
fancy $11,000 or more in its first 
Carlton session. 

The blockbuster longruns in¬ 
clude “Seven Wonders of World,” 
a big $27,500 In its 30th Casino 
frame,* “South Pacific,” a torrid 
$20,000 in its 23rd Dominion week; 
and “Around World in 80 Days,” 
boff at $12,300 in 64th Astoria 
stanza. Another great holdover hit 
is “Indiscreet,” • which started off 
with over $18,400 at the Warner 
Theatre and is still big at $12,000 
or near 'in its sixth round. 

Estimates for Last Week 

Astoria (CMA) (1,474; $1.20- 
$2.15) — “Around World” (UA) 
(64th wk). Great $12,300. 

Carlton (20th) (1,128; 70-$2.15)— 
"Certain Smile” (20th). Fancy 
$ 11 , 000 . . 

Casino (Indie) (1,337; 70-$2.15)— 
"Seven Wonders” (Robin) (30th 
wk). Big $27,500. 

Dominion (CMA) (1,712: $1.05- 
12.20)—“South Pacific” (20th) (23d 
wk). Tall $20,000. 

Empire (M-G) (3,099* 55-$1.70 )t- 
"Proud Rebel” (M-G). Average 
$12,000 or near. 

Ganmont (CMA) (1,500; 50-$1.70) 
"Twilight for Gods” (U) (3d wk). 
Modest $4,000. First was $4,800. 
"Naked and Dead” (Rank-RKO) 
preems Sept 24. 

Leicester Square Theatre (CMA) 
(1,376; 50-$1.70) — “Next to No 
Time” (BL> (3d wk). Winding cur¬ 
rent run with stout $9,500. Second 
was $11,000. “Passionate Summer’* 
(Rank) follows on Sept 25. 

London Pavilion (UA) <1,217: 50- 
$1.70)—“God’s Little Acre” (UA> 
(3d wk). Heading for solid $7,800. 
Second was $9,400. 

Odeon. Leicester Square. (CMA) 
(2.200; 50-$1.7Q>—“Defiant Ones” 
(UA). Opened in fine stvle with 
prospects for mighty $17,000 or 
near on first frame. 

Odeon, Marble Arch (CMA) (2,- 
200; 50-$1.70)— “Rockets Galore” 
(Rank). Oke. $7,800 or. close 

Odeon, Totienham Court Road 
(CMA) (1,800; 95-S2J80)— “Wind¬ 
jammer” (19th wk). Fair $7,500. 

Plaza (Par) (1,902; 70-S1.70)— 
•‘Carry On Sergeant” (Anglp- 
Amal). Fine $11,000. “Rock-A-Bye- 
Baby” (Par) due Oct. 3. 

Rialto (20th) (592; 50-21.30)— 
"Fiend Who Walked West” (20th) 
(2d wk). Fat $4,700 after $5,600 in 
opening session. 

Ritz (M-G) _ (432: 50-21.30)— 

"Merrv Andrew” (M-G) (2d wk). 
Good $3,600. Opener was $4,000. 

Warner (WB) (1,785; 50-21.70)— 
"Indiscreet (WB) (6th wk). Con¬ 
sistently big since its-opening with 
smash $12,000 or near this frame 
and better than last week. 


Re-Edited Version Fits 
Key’ in Irish Release 

Dublin, Sept. 23. 

“The Key” (Col), which was 
nixed by film censor Liam O’Hara 
as well as by the censorship appeal 
board, has been okayed in a re- 
edited version. Columbia has been 
pulling stout grosses in Ireland 
this year and had three pictures 
showing concurrently recently in 
the city. 

Trio of pix were “World Was 
His Jury,” “Camp on Blood Is¬ 
land” and “The Goddess.” Despite 
some minor scissoring, “Island” 
did big biz at the Adelphi. “The 
Goddess,” also subject to some 
cuts, did a b.o. nosedive at the 
Regal although it won critical ac- 


British Techid Pays 1 \%- 

London, Sept. 30. 

Although the board of Techni¬ 
color, Ltd. is maintaining its in¬ 
terim dividend at 7 Mt%, stock¬ 
holders have been warned that the 
volume of business in the current 
year is down- as compared to the 
past year. 

With a view to securing addition? 
al production, Technicolor has ac¬ 
quired certain rights to do. busi¬ 
ness in additional territories and 
the cost is being, written, off over 
a comparatively short period. This, 
states a circular to stockholders, 
imposes a' further, but temporary, 
reduction of profits in addition to 
the reduction arising from lower 
output. Provided there is no fur¬ 
ther deterioration in the general 
level of business and costs remain 
steady, the board anticipates an 
[improvement in.the profit situa¬ 
tion. 

French Filmgoing Dipped 
14% in Ust Half of ’58, 
Government Tally Slows 

I Paris, Sept. 23. 

Statistics disclosed by the gov¬ 
ernmental Centre Du Cinema show 
that illmgoing during the second 
semester of 1958, as compared to 
the same period last year, fell by 
14%.' But a drop in revenue due 
to less attendance was compensated 
by a 26% hike-in general film the¬ 
atre admission: prices. 

CNC maintains that since the be¬ 
ginning of the year French pic the¬ 
atres are losing one filmgoer out 
of every eight Reasons for this 
drop are given as the rise in ticket 
prices, the higher cost of living and' 
a general falling off in film qual¬ 
ity. . 

During this time the English 
film, though' getting only 8% of 
the total gross, went up in. follow¬ 
ing by 113% in comparison to.its 
showing in ’57. This Was mainly 
due to the phenomenally grossing 
“The Bridge oq the River Kwai” 
(Col) being as an Anglo : film. Oth¬ 
erwise, English Rems remained as 
before. 

The Russian film showed a 
fabulous climb of 164% over ’57, 
but still reps only .05% of the over¬ 
all gross. This was partly due to 
one picture, the Cannes fe$t prize¬ 
winning “Flying Cranes,” whiclTis 
in its fourth month in its firstrun. 

Yanks went up 10% in attend¬ 
ance over last -year and still take 
33% of the gross, while the French 
•film fell .02% and gets 46.9% of 
its own mart take. Italian, German 
land other nationality pix also fell 
gff somewhat 


YANK, ITALO PIX GET 
JAP BONUS PERMITS 

* Tokyo, Sept 23. 

Two American films and two 
Italian pictures were chosen’for 
the four bonus import licenses for 
the first half of this year. Selected 
were “Ten Commandments” (Par) 
and “Witness for Prosecution” (UA) 
from the U.S., and Italian /films 
“H Bidone” (Taiei' Eiga) and 
“White Night” (Italifilm). 

These respective importers- are 
credited with an extra permit for 
films which must be released prior 
to Dec. 31 this year. Selections 
were madg from 13 films submitted 
by 10 importers. 


Rank’s Irish Profits 

Dublin, Sept 23. 

Both J. Arthur Rank’s Irish out¬ 
fits dropped trading profits slight¬ 
ly during past year. The Irish 
Cinemas group reported earnings 
at $324,176, against $364,316 last 
year, but maintained dividend on 
ordinary stock at 17^6%, and 6% 
on preference stock. 

Odeon (Ireland) Ltd. trading 
profit was $153,069, compared 
with $161,057 in 1956-57, but here 
again divvy was maintained at 
IffizYo. fcj, I-.MI l l-h .1} 


THK HEATHIt TOUCH 

*S9 Steps* Unit Lwatioalng In 
Mountain-Lock Country 

Glasgow, Sept. 23. 

* Auld Lang Syne terrain is a fa¬ 
vorite for lensing. A rush of lo- 
cationing has taken place before 
daylight conditions worsen with 
the late fall. A Rank unit has 
planed in to make “The Thirty-Nine 
Steps,” thriller based on the John 
Buchan novel. Stan art Ken¬ 
neth More and Taina Elg. Betty 
Box is producing and Ralph Smart 
directing. Unit is filming outdoor 
scenes in the mountain-and-loch 
country 4 known as the Trossachs, 
and also at Edinburgh. . 

Frank Launder and' SIdhey Gil- 
liat are filming “The Bridal Parth” 
in the Argyll area near Oban. Bill 
Travers, who. starred in “Wee 
Geordie,” is featured. “Rockets 
Galore,” with Jeannie Carson, Don¬ 
ald Culver, was recently lensed on 
the northwest Scotland island of 
Barra. It has its preem_ at the 
Odeon here Sunday (28). 


Unload 9 Cinemas 

Sydney, Sept. 23. 

Hoyt’s major Aussie cinema loop 
Is ready to unload nine suburban 
houses to* commercial interests. 
Circuit operates about 180 houses 
coast to coast here. Selling figure 
of the nine currently on the market 
is $600,000. Sale stipulation is that 
none of the block can be used as a 
cinema or as stage house. 

20th-Fox holds thie majoi; stock 
sayso in the loop, which . Is headed 
here by Ernest Turnbull, who is 
also topper of the local 20th-Fox 
distribution outfit Figuring here 
is that the cinemas put on the block 
are now'regarded as outdated end 
unsuitable for the presentation of 
new screen techniques such as 
Cinerama and Cinemascope. Most 
of the theatres are in industrial 
"Zones which have been hard hit by 
the inroads of tv and unemploy¬ 
ment Understood that Hoyts also 
will unload outmoded cinemas in 
the Melbourne zone, keeping only 
thoses houses showing.no red. 

Hoyts will curtail playing time in 
several nabers froth six days week¬ 
ly to three a week. Staff cuts will 
see house managers asked to man¬ 
age three cinemas instead of one.' 
This move is irksome to the man¬ 
agers’ union, which maintains there 
must be a manager employed at 
each theatre. Matter is to go before 
the Arbitration Court for a deci¬ 
sion. 

Greater Union Leasing 

Greater Union Theatres, opposi¬ 
tion. circuit, headed by Norman 
Rydge, is leasing many of its sub¬ 
urban cinemas to former employ¬ 
ees. to operate on a family basis. 
Rydge, it’s understood, figures this 
to be the most profitable avenue’ 
for so-called fringe houses. Rydge 
firmly believes that the Aussie in¬ 
dustry will outsmart tele with ton 
product, sharp salesmanship and 
a new showmanship. 

Biz In the Aussie houses is caus- 
ing no headaches when pix like 
“80 Days” (UA)' runs over 47 
weeks, “Kwai” (Col). *roes35 weeks', 
“Peyton Place” (20th) tops 21 
weeks and “Witness for Prosecu¬ 
tion” (UA) lasts more than eieht 
weeks. Thes^ nix prove that the 
Aussies are willing to pay Increased 
admissions for the type of fare 
thev want. 

Biz is bad in the suburbs, not 
because 6f tele, say many show¬ 
men, hut because the key city .long- 
runs hold up suburban release and 
force exhibs to play old product 
, having little appeal. To remedy 
this setup, Hoyts, Metro, and Great¬ 
er Union are. now all setting cer¬ 
tain product In the suburbs, on a 
day-date basis with the keyers. 


Cagney ‘Dublin’ 

Dublin, Sept. 23. 

James Cagney, here with the 
“Shake Hands With the Devil” 
location company, will don 
greasepaint for one of his rare 
stage appearances Oct. 12 at 
the Royal Theatre for bene¬ 
fit performance of Ireland’s 
Variety Club. 

Actor will do his George M. 
Cohan routine as part of his 


Shepperton’s Thanks A Mlion’ For 
Britain’s Act of Faith In Studio 

—-----f 


Fete Spuisk Exhib 

Madrid, Sept. 23. 

Spanish exhibitors gathered in 
Vigo recently to do honor to Isaac 
Fraga on the 50th anniversary of 
his career as an * exhib and thea¬ 
tre impresario. Be opened his first 
cinema in Santiago de Compostela 
in 1908. 

Through the years Fraga 
acquired 32 film showcases' and 
theatres. His.Empresa Fraga owns 
legit Alcazar, Infanta Beatriz and 
Figaro In Madrid. 


Brit Cinema Admissions 
15% Below 1957 For 
2d Quarter THs Yr, 

London, Sept. 30. 

More evidence of the continuing 
decline in admissions comes from 
the Board of Trade in its survey of 
more than' 4,000 picture theatres 
for the second quarter of 1958. 
Admissions were down 15% over 
the same period in the previous 
year and gross receipts were 7% 
lower, difference being caused by 
increased seat prices. 

Paid admissions in the period 
from April to June totalled 191,- 
000,000 and 4% below, the returns 
for. first quarter of the year. This 
was 35,000,000 below the total for 
the second quarter of 1957. The 
survey points out that the decline 
has been smaller than in previ- 
[ ous returns. 

Gross takings for the second 
quarter totalled $58,250,000 or 4% 
below receipts for the first quar¬ 
ter of the year. Average admis¬ 
sion price was around 31c, a frac¬ 
tion below the previous quarter. 

The BQT report also shows that 
190 picture theatres have shuttered 
in the past year with a decline in 
seating capacity of under 4%, 
which .is much less than the fall 
in admissions. 

According to a breakdown of the 
statistics, the rate of decline in 
admissions continues to be less in 
southern than in northern regions 
and it. is thought that attendance 
in -London and the southeast re¬ 
gions were, adversely affected by 
the bus strike in May and June. 
[Theatres most hit by the decline 
‘were the smaller and medium¬ 
sized houses. 


PRINT REGULATIONS HIT 
U.S. MAJORS IN JAPAN 

Tokyo, Sept. 23. 

U.S. majors here .had another 
crisis heaped on them by the Fi¬ 
nance Ministry’s announced inten¬ 
tion to hold up import licenses on 
pictures not conforming with re¬ 
cently stated print cost regulations. 
These, as MPEA Far East veep 
Irving Maas put it, ask that “every¬ 
thing must he charged t-6 New 
York including the kitchen sink.” 

Majors except Columbia and Uni¬ 
versal are immediately affected and 
may soon be lacking product to 
distribute. Filing is that legally 
the Finance Ministry has no right 
to dictate'terms between buyer and 
seller. But since the Ministry has 
right to dictate imports, subsid¬ 
iaries here don’t have a leg to 
stand on. Columbia and Universal 
are thus far .exempt because their 
franchises already conform to re¬ 
quired new policy. 


Name WB Italo Chief 
Yeepee of Film Union 

Rome, Sept. 23. 

Umberto Orlandi, Warner Bros’, 
general manager for Italy, has been 
named veepee of the UNDF, the 
Italian Film Distributor’s Union. 
Post was recently vacated by Vit¬ 
torio Mattea, Italian RKO topper 
here, until that company’s sellout 
to Rank Films. At the same meet¬ 
ing, Michele Lauria, local Colum¬ 
bia Films topper* was named coun¬ 
selor of the Union. 

Other topics of discussion-at the 
session were relations withTexhib- 
itors, which have been very 
strained here for a long time plus 
other -AGIS-ANICA trade prob¬ 
lems concerning the Rome and 
#*H:i areas. 


London, Sept. 30. 

. Modernization of British Lion’s 
Shepperton Studios at a cost of al¬ 
most $1,900,000 represented an act 
of faith by the government in the 
British film industry, said Douglas 
Collins, chairman of the. parent 
company at the reopening. cere¬ 
mony last Tuesday (23). There had 
been proposals to turn the studios 
into a site for a housing develop-, 
ment or to convert It Into an air¬ 
craft factory, but the government 
agreed to the plans for transform¬ 
ing it .into one of the most modern 
producing outfits in Europe. 

- The whole project, Collins add¬ 
ed, represented a great show of 
faith in the industry. He°paid par¬ 
ticular tribute to the government 
authorities concerned, who ’ had 
demonstrated their confidence by 
giving the green light to the 
project. 

He described It as a “public stu¬ 
dio,” analogous to public baths 
which were open to all who wanted 
to use them. They would welcome 
producers who wanted to combine 
'economy, efficiency and service, 
whether they were making feature 
films or whether their particular 
concern was television. 

In its moderniied form, Shepper¬ 
ton comprises four large stages, 
three smaller stages, one large 
silent stage, as well as insert, trick 
^d scoring stages, plus an ex¬ 
terior lot extending over 60 acres. 
There are also four preview thea¬ 
tres, 36 cutting rooms, administra¬ 
tive buildings, etc. The inaugural 
ceremony was performed by 
Heather Sears-and Terry-Thomas, 

Harold Boxall, who is studio 
managing director, revealed that 
within a month the name of the 
operating company will be changed 
from British Lion Studios to Shep¬ 
perton Studios. It will, however, 
remain a wholly-owned subsidiary 
of British Lion Films, which, in 
tum A is operated with government 
finance via an arrangement made 
a.few years back with the National 
Film Finance Corp. 

Rocket Open to Hast 
Off ’59 Edinburgh Fest; 
Map RobL Bens Salute 

Edinburgh,' Sept. 23. , 

Highbrow section of the 1959 In¬ 
ternational Edinburgh Festival 
will be brought into tomorrow with 
a futuristic opera written around 
the fate of occupants of a Mars 
rocket lost in space. Entitled “An- 
iara,” by Swedish composer Karl- 
Birger Blomdahl, it will be per¬ 
formed by Stockholm’s Royal Op¬ 
era with Jussi Bjoerling as a prin¬ 
cipal singer. 

Rocket opera, according to Fes¬ 
tival artistic director Robert Pon- 
sonby, will have its world preCm 
at the King’s Theatre here next 
August. Another likely offering in 
1959 will be x a show to commem¬ 
orate the bicentenary of the birth 
of Scot national poet Robert Burns, 
Orch and chamber concerts as well 
as art and drama programs are be¬ 
ing s*et. 

Idea of staging top-jazz units 
and revues under the official Fes¬ 
tival banner has not been lost 
sight of. A 1958 plan to bring Louis 
Armstrong and his group to the 
junket failed to come off. “But we 
are certainly still trying to arrange 
entertainment of this type,” said 
Ponsonby. “I cannot say at this 
stage,” he added, “whether Mr. 
Armstrong will be invited,” How¬ 
ever, he confirmed that some big- 
name jazz men will be invited, next 
year. 

A revival of the Scot success of 
some years ago, “The Thrie Es- 
taites,” with a complete Auld Lang 
Syne cast, is skedded. Play is 
adapted by Robert Kemp from Sir 
David Lindsay’s satire. 

Meantime, a top-level confer¬ 
ence of all parties interested ini 
the Festival’s future has been sug¬ 
gested to find methods of saving 
the junket financially. Minimum 
of aid has followed public appeals . 
for support, with little interest on 
the part of city firms and busi¬ 
nesses. The civic head, Lord Prov¬ 
ost Ian Johnson-Gilbert, describes 
the response as “terribly disap¬ 
pointing,” saying: “We asked for 


4$7$,000 and we got $19,000.’ 



13 


•VAKMTW ttfiOOH OFFICE 
4 rn. HcWr Wl—« . SoMfear 


VRilEft 


INTEiNAVMiru; 



Reds Bred Here In New Fresh Air 


Caracas, Sept. 23. *f 

Audiences broke tradition by ap¬ 
plauding the first night of Russia’* 
Film Week here. Films; grossed 
as much as 20,000 bolivats ($6,000) 
on a weelc night, where 2,00:0 boli¬ 
vars (s average. The country’*-! 
Communist party has erupted in¬ 
to the political vacuum left by the 
.former dictator. Press and radio , 
swarm with Reds and the Commie 
line, has not been cut from these 
Soviet films. 

On the other-hand, at'the TJ.S. 
embassy-sponsored plays given re¬ 
cently by a Catholic university, 
there was not even a line. Al¬ 
though a caravan of cars did meet 
the actors, remarks went like this; 

“This is the- second ttime the 
State Dept has sent us a Catholic 
troupe. You don’t have to convince 
our Catholics, you have to convince 
our leftist laborers!” 

“The plays do more to keep up 
Americans’ morale * abroad than 
nurture international -relations.” 

Another Venezuelan remarked: 
‘Why do you keep sending us 
amateurs? Many-of our most prom¬ 
inent actors have never seen a 
good play. Russia sends us Chabii- 
Vant from the Ballet Boldioi 
{theatre was sold- Dut for the first 
time since Grace Moores sang to 
1941’Oi \_ ■; ' : 

60 Brit Series J3®ira 
To Dubijk for Foeas 
On Irish Fin Cadre 

London, Sept. 23’. 

A planeload of 60 newspaper¬ 
men, photographers and tv com¬ 
mentators was' flown. Ho Ardmore 
Studios, Bray, near Dublin last 
Thursday. (18) tp visit the studios 
which are to be the centre of a 
new Tri*h -film industry. 

The spree was- organized by 
Jock MacGregor on behalf of Troy 
Films, which is shooting “Shake 
Hands With the Devil.” This is a 
$1,600,000 production for United 
Artists jarring James Cagney, 
Don Murray* Michael Redgrave, 
Sybil Thorndike, Glynis Johns, 
Dana Wynter and a host of Irish 
artists headed by Cyril Cusack and 
Noel. PnrcelL^Miss Wynter flew 
over with the scribes and was 
greeted by the Emerald Girls’ 
Pipe Band at Dublin „ Airport, 
where she . was interviewed by. 
Derek Rond' for BBC-TV’s ’‘Pic¬ 
ture Parade.’* 

Following junketing on the 
plane, the party lunched at Jhe 
studios, which are about 12 miles 
out off Dublin, watched shooting,' 
met the stats, was taken around 
the up-to-date studios, attended 
a eoCktati iest hosted by the Irish 
Tourist Board and returned to 
London the same night. 

The Ardmore Studios are owned 
by Emmet Dalton Ltd., and Dalton 
and Louis Elliman are the com¬ 
pany’s toppers. The studios -— an 
$840,600 project—have virtually 
sprung up within a year. Three 
'productions by Emmet Dalton ltd. 
haven already been siEot at Ard¬ 
more, “Home is the Hero,** with 
Arthur Kennedy; “Sally’s Irish 
Rogue,” with - Julie Harris, and 
“The Big Birthday,” with Barry 
Fitzgerald, but “Devil” is Ard¬ 
more’s first major international 
production and opens up a new 
vista for Ireland’s film future. 

The studios are set in 35 acres,- 
with production offices in an old 
manor house and director Michael 
- Anderson, told Variety that facili¬ 
ties are as up-to-date as any with 
which he has worked. Building Is 
still in progress, hut already there 
are three large stages in operation 
and complete self-contained tech-,] 
nical facilities. Westsex Magnetic, 
sound Is .in use and, as proof of 
the up-to-dateness of the equlp-l 
ment, the studio owns one $28,000 
Mitchell BNC -camera and has 
hired the only ether one In the 
U.K. “ § v Pi 1 


Crater Union Slates Bay 
Of Top Canberra Circuit 

„ Sydney, Sept. 23. 

Greater Union Theatres, headed, 
by Norman B. Rydge, is reported 
set to buy a major stock interest in 
Canberra Capital Theatres, top. cir¬ 
cuit in the Aussie capitals Under¬ 
stood Rydge and his general man¬ 
ager, John Evans - (currently in 
U.S.), win move on to.the board of 
directors as soon as!, the deal is] 
consummated. 

CCT, headed by Malcolm Moir, 
also operates a major drive-in in 
addition to class cinemas in the 
territory on a first-run policy! 
GUT, opposition to the Hoyts’ pit 
loop. Is 50% controlled by the Rank 
Or ganiza tion. . • It’S . known that 
Rydge is keen to expand in key 
positions here. 

Davis To Reveal 
Rank Exhib Plans 
In Near Future 

London, Sept. SO. 

The Rank Organization’s plans 
for rationalization are to be an¬ 
nounced-by John Davis at a dinner 
next Oct. 9, to be. attended by a 
representative gathering bf exhib¬ 
itors. His aim, in his own words, is 
“to put exhibition in this country 
on a sound basis before it is too 
late.” 

The urgency.of introducing ra¬ 
tionalization was stressed by Lord 
Rank in his pnfmaT report to stock¬ 
holders a fortnight ago, and at a 
meeting with the press Davis in¬ 
timated that the group had decided 
to go it alone in view of the nega¬ 
tive response from the industry. 

In his invitation to the ^dinner, 
the R*nk aide points out that the 
last budget granted a measure of 
temporary relief but fhe'rate of 
admissions has continued to fall 
and the costs to rise. Supply of 
film from Hollywood has also been 
steadily falling for a number of 
years and he sees no prospect of 
any improvement 

As, therefore, tb$ need for ra¬ 
tionalization was greater than ever. 
Since his suggestions' had evoked 
j.email response from the Industry, 

’ Davis explains that the Rank Or¬ 
ganization has been compelled in 
self preservation and in the Inter¬ 
ests of its shareholders to take ac¬ 
tion on its own. 

Davis adds that sbs the Orangiza- 
tion’s plans have now been formu¬ 
lated and as there are many re¬ 
ports as to their Intentions, he 
feels that the sooner the industry 
knows what they really intend to 
do the better. “Certainly,” he adds, 
“we have nothing to hide.” 


SEE RKO AUSSIE EXIT 
AS PRODUCT DWINDLES 

Sydriey, Sept. 23. 
General opinion in industry dr-j 
cles here is that RKO will exit 
fFom the Aussie scene around next 
Ynletide despite strong denials by 
Jack Labow, RKO chief bere, and 
other RKO execs. 

' Exit prediction follows disclos¬ 
ure that Metro will now handle 
top Disney product here, thus leav¬ 
ing RKO with little product in the 
vault. Not enough, it’s said, to 
[permit costly exchange 'operation 
coast to coast. A few wiieks ago. 
Allied Artists quit RKO dlatribu-] 
tion to ✓ switch to Paramount. 

• Not long ago RKO was one of 
the toppers in this zone on release 
via the Hoyts’ pie loop. Rut now 
. -there are. few RKO pix incircula- 
here. 


The limit on what a German 
producer can spend;ph a film mu¬ 
sical is Deutsche-Martc' 1,700,000 
(about $400,000). If'the budget 
runs above that' figure, recoup¬ 
ment becomes risky .Georg Jactohy, 
vet German director 1 and a special¬ 
ist in musicals,, stated id N.' Y. last 
week. Jacoby had been in ' the 
.States to compare irotes and to 
scout vehicles for his wife, the 
German star Maria Roekk, with 
whom he has made several recent 
films. 

One of the troubles of the Ger¬ 
man producer is the enforced 
length of the pictures. ‘You Amer¬ 
icans can afford to make long 
films,” he said. “In Germany, we 
can’t. Exhibitors wouldn’t pay any 
more for them, and the added costs 
would be too great. As a result we 
have difficulties in telling a good 
story in our musicals. At least 3,- 
000 feet must be given over to 
songs and dancing. That leaves 
only 5,000 to 6,000 feet for dialog, 
it’s not enough*” 

Two of Jacoby’s recent filmusi- 
eals—“NaehtS im Gruenen Kaka¬ 
du” and “Buehne Frei for Mari¬ 
ka,” both produced by Real Film 
of Hamburg—have proven big hits. 
Pix star Miss .Roekk. '“Kakadu” 
got back its negative costs in Eu¬ 
rope during the first four months 
off release, 

“We do what we can to improve 
our films,” Jacoby said, “but we 
are so limited in-pur ^release. We 
sorely miss the east, with its many 
theatres.. Places like Prussia and 
Schlesien used-to give- us the hulk 
of our audience for German .films. 
Now we don’t have them any 
more.” 

Jacoby, a Vet of the old UFA, 
said-the German industry was mak¬ 
ing progress in exporting its films 
to everywhere except the United 
States. "For some Teas.on or 
other, the German mentality does 
not seem to please in the U.S.,” he 
held. “It’s odd, because your 
mentality is fully accepted by nur 
people.” He said some of the 
younger German critics had com¬ 
plained that German musicals re¬ 
quired modernizing and that this 
was one of the reasons for his cur¬ 
rent visit, i*e., to look into the vari¬ 
ous new processes like Cinerama 
and CineMirade. 

“We don’t have any of them yet,” 
he said. "We are behind. It’s 
incredible, but the UFA Pavillion 
in Berlin still doesn’t have a wide 
screen, and the same is true of a 
great many German houses.” 


U.S. Imports Top 
Swiss Pix Market 


Zurich, Sept. 23. 

Recently revealed statistics here 
show "that Yank films again topped 
all other Swiss pix imports in 1957 
by a wide margin'. American films 
totaled 223 pictures';, or 39.9% as 
against 165 or 36.7% in 1956. Total 
of imported films was 557. 

Runnerup position here is held 
by West Germany with 108 ptx 
(about 19%) against 79 (17.4%) in 
tiie previous year, followed hy 
France with 107 films and Britain 
with 46 pix. Next on the lisp is 
Italy with 41 imports. It had, 49 
films in 1956. 

Contrary to 1956, no imports are 
registered from Africa, Denmark, 
Finland, Greece Mexico and Soviet 
Russia. 


For ‘Trading With (TV) Enemy’ 


Irish Condemn Horror 
Pix, Yet Patronize ’Em 

Dublin, Sept. 23. 

Dept, of Justice here is receiv¬ 
ing protests from pressure groups 
and private individuals against im¬ 
portation of hojrror pictures. Let¬ 
ters are being passed down the line 
to censor Liam O’Hara, but he can 
do nothing about them. Censorship 
Act makes no provision for cen¬ 
soring horrors or restricting' audi¬ 
ences to adults. Rut he can, and 
does, crack down on “excessive 
brutality,” suggestive dialog or sit¬ 
uations and too much flesh expo¬ 
sure. 

Not only are horror scenes not 
censorable, hut they 'are hypo for 
the b.o. The 3,500rseater Theatre 
Royal did s.r.o. bik for two weeks 
early this month with “Dracula” 
(Rank), the biggest biz this year, 
and other exhibs are lining up at 
the distributors’ offices for more 
chillers. 


Opposish as B.O. 
Spurts in Aussie 

Sydney, Sept. 23. 

Knockers of motion pictures are 
exiting from the Aussie scene as 
top product proves conclusively 
there’s nothing wrong with films 
irrespective of the strongest op¬ 
position including television. Ter¬ 
rific business also proves that the 
public is prepared to pay increased 
admissions for the type of fafe de¬ 
sired—from the teenager upwards. 

“The Young Lions” (20th) 
preemed at the 3,300-seater Regent, 
Sydney, for Hoyts, plus key nabers 
on day-and-date, pulled 30,000 pay¬ 
ees in one day—a record for the 
loop. Pic is tipped to set an all- 
time Aussie high. 

Cinerama got underway at .the 
Plaza, Sydney, 1,500-seater, via the 
Hoyts* banner Wed. (17), with a 
gala charity shew at $4 top and 
scored with the sophisticated pay¬ 
ees. Regular season started 
Thiirs. (18) with, a once-nightly and 
three matinees weekly schedule at 
$2 top. Ernest Turnbull, managing) 
director of Hoyts, predicted the in- 
itialer, “This is Cinerama,” will 
run one year at this bouse. 

Metro has gotten tin the block¬ 
buster gravy train with “Gigi” at 
the 700-seater Liberty, Sydney, on 
two-a-day at upped admissions. 
This one looks okay for six months 
or more. 

Block buster toppers here are 
“Bridge on River Kwai” (Col), 28th 
week; “Around World in 80 Days” 
(UA), 50th week; “Ten Command¬ 
ments” (Par), 28th week, with 
“Peyton Place” (20th) winding up 
a 23 weeks’ run. Todd-AO comes 
into the. Mayfair, Sydney, 1,300- 
seater, Oct. 13 with “Sonth Pacific” 
under the Hoyts* banner. 


Rank Official Retires 

London, Sept. 23. 

Frederick M. P. West, joint man¬ 
aging director fof Rank Overseas 
Film Distributors, has retired. He 
joined Eagle Lion Distributors, as 
R.O.FD. was then known, in Jan¬ 
uary, 1946, as assistant managing 
director and was upped to manag¬ 
ing director in September, 1948. 

No successor has yet been 
.tnemecL *■*-' 


Indie Shoots ‘Bridge’ 

London, Sept. 23. 

The Xanadu Films production, 
“The Boy And The Bridge,” which 
is being shot on location in Lon¬ 
don, has made British history by 
being the first film production- to 
be granted the use of the Tower, 
of London and Tower Bridge. 

With full police and authority 
assistance the unit has been -en¬ 
veloping the span in thick fog 
several times a day. Whenever 
this happens traffic stops. It’s been 
a major attraction both with Lon¬ 
doners and. tourists. • ' - 


-+ By HAROLD MYERS 

‘ London, Sept. 30. 

As the deal whereby Associated 
British . Picture Corp. gains con¬ 
trol of Ealing Films (via its take¬ 
over bid of the. parent company. 
Associated Talking Pictures) has 
been accepted by stockholders, the 
industry in Britain is now seeking 
a compromise formula to avert the 
introduction of sanctions. The 
threat of boycott against ABFC 
stems from anxiety within the Film 
Industry Defense Organization 
(FIDO). which was set up earlier 
this year to prevent feature films 
finding their way to the television, 
FIDO, which is financed by a 
levy on boxoffice takings* came 
into being largely as a result of 
negotiations by ABC-TV, the cor¬ 
poration’s wholly-owned commer¬ 
cial television subsidiary, for a 
franchise deal to show 100 Ealing 
oldies on its web. The rumpus 
stirred up within the industry 
finally agreeing to the terms for 
operating FIDO, ABPC made its 
takeover bid. 

When news of the takeover first 
broke on the stock exchange with¬ 
out mentioning a buyer, the indus¬ 
try, thought that one of the other 
networks, without film industry 
affiliations, had pulled-a fast one. 
When ABPC, however, was asked 
by representatives of Rank and 
(Iranada, who also have commer¬ 
cial tv- interests, to join forces and 
better the offer, the real identity of 
the bidder first became known. 

Af that point, the industry, 
through its FIDO machinery, - 
swept into immediate aetion. The 
FIDO board of directors took the 
view that if the ABPC takeover 
meant that all Ealing product be¬ 
came available .for-tv, their project 
would be stillborn. Strong action, 
they decided, wasealledfor unless 
an assurance was given that the 
films acquired in the deal would 
he put into cold storage and not 
released on tv. So far, such under¬ 
takings have not been forthcoming 
blit there has been no announce¬ 
ment to the effect that they will be 
released on tv. 

In highly confidential talks be¬ 
tween industry leaders and top 
ABPC brass it has been made clear 
to the corporation that, if neces¬ 
sary, complete sanctions will be in¬ 
troduced against every arm of the 
organization. It was further made 
clear that such action would be 
taken with utmost reluctance and 
an appeal has been made for a 
compromise solution which would 
satisfy both sides in the contro¬ 
versy. 

There’s been a standstill on the 
negotiations recently, hut a deci¬ 
sion may be taken within a few 
days. Wolfe Cohen, Warner Broth¬ 
ers International veepee, arrived 
here yesterday (Mon.) on a routine 
visit, but is taking advantage of his 
stay to discuss the situation and 
its implications with ABPC execu¬ 
tives. WB, with its 37 W?c invest¬ 
ment, is the biggest individual 
stockholder in ABPC and would be 
seriously hurt by any boycott ac¬ 
tion. 

As top industry observers see 
the situation, the compromise 
c6uld decide not to take any ac¬ 
tion whatsoever, so long as the 
Ealing films remain in the vaults 
and only consider a boycott if it is 
decided t o rele ase them on the arr. 
Secondly,"FIDO could be allowed 
to outbid ABPC and acquire the 
rights to the Ealing product. 
Thirdly, the Ealing films could be 
paid off by FIDO in the same way 
as it would pay off any other pro¬ 
ducer who was being tempted with 
a tv deal. 


Henry G. Plitt of Paramount 
Gulf Theatres is a Theatre Owners 
of America vicepresident. He also 
has another title: Chairman of 
TOA’s New Personality Develop¬ 
ment Committee. It’s in that ca¬ 
pacity that he arranged for Jerry 
Wald to speak at the TOA conven¬ 
tion in Miami Oct 21-25. 





















Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


P'Ariety 


: x." ' 




'' '■ 


v 




^v' ' " : y' J '± ,< 




V x ;xM^' %«** '; - 


»:-=' --&.: ,i ' 


Gf;tQ€ 


iterranean 


C'■ vrfe’■;,; : . : ,■'• r ;fin - roll. 

^lifoalled the world 



tSv<,-4 a!S' ^ 1 i p&^©Q.xitry ' \ 

'—?_ JL ' ' .r \ * 




~os -:- '''*;'' •- Vo - 

^WHxx»xv^x s o ^-.*-y <: -4 ■K--* ' "-...y' 
^ ^t4;K^x, y t»irtV^- *\ l 

♦ >y %s -y X, 


;|^1©WARD,SMAI±, PRESENTS 


BtoognB| 

wmhBSSwSwbei 



«»»?»gias.yj 


l&LfiilR^lgl 
llIgiT?^M^«SI!l 


i“lTl,&,^'i‘ ?.rj if. 


.*■#'.»* ?tY7tfiu*3 ^i* 1 a?tut ;i^r'U- fcct& i r f^\<x7’ 










16 


PICTURES 


1*2hkie£y 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


Ways & Means Engross Japanese 


Shirpizu Here to Study U.S. Market—Stresses 
Theatre—Television Segregation in Nippon 

t-— 


Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Japanese film producers are ex¬ 
ceptionally conscious of new tech¬ 
nical developments in America and 
constantly are watching the mar¬ 
ket for improvement of their own 
product. “When you have some¬ 
thing new, we come immediately 
to buy," Masashi Shimizu, prexy of 
Toho Co., one of the. largest film 
outfits in Nippon, said here last 
week. 

Here to show his company's, 
Venice Film Festival Grand Prix 
winner, “The Rickshaw Man,” and 
attend opening of Toho’s^ third 
overseas theatre for showing of 
its product, Shimizu readily ad¬ 
mitted he is seeking Japanese- 
American co-production deals and 
is looking into an American mar¬ 
ket for Japanese vidpix series. 
Japanese producers, while not yet 
interested in making such series 
for their own people, are definite¬ 
ly planning them for export. 

Shimizu pointed ou that al¬ 
though Japanese television is on 
18 hours a day, no Nipponese film 
made for theatrical release is sold 
to tv. “We not only are producers 
but distributors, as well,” he said, 
explaining that such ^ practice 
would Irvt business. Instead, 
about 22 telepix are turned out 
monthly, running from 15 to 30 
minutes. Balance of tv time is con¬ 
sumed by live programs. 

Japan is so interested in latest 
American technical developments, 
Shimizu explained, that Tokyo now 
has four of the hard-to-get AMPEX 
video tape recorders. Color tv al¬ 
ready is on the way in Japan, ac¬ 
cording to visitor, who said one 
station in Tokyo is ready to go 
with it. 

In addition to its new film house 
in Los Angeles, Toho has one in 
Honolulu and a third in $ao Paulo; 
Brazil for exhibition of films 
abroad. Negotiations also are on 
for opening of others in Paris and 
Lima, Peru. 

Production-wise, Shimizu said 
Toho, which releases approximate¬ 
ly €0% of the annual 130 Ameri¬ 
can imports, has just completed a 
co-production deal with a French 
company for the making of “The 
Road of Marco Polo.” Another 
deal is on with an unspecified 
Hollywood producer. 

Shimizu is making a tom* of the 
U.S. with “Rickshaw,!’ is an at¬ 
tempt to acquaint American public 
with his company’s product. He 
was feted here by Assn, of Motion 
Picture Producers at a Paramount 
luncheon attended by various stu¬ 
dio execs and stars. 

Not Playing—Two Ways; 
Berger Notifies WB He 
Snspects Their ‘Bidding’ 

Minneapolis, Sept. 30. 

Warner Bros, is currently the 
object of circuit owner Bennie 
Berger’s anger. . He’s aroused be¬ 
cause of his failure to win any 
of the company’s “important” pic¬ 
ture on competitive bids for his 
local loop firstrun Gopher. He 
charges that the cards have been 
'stacked. against him in favor of 
the competing Minnesota Amuse¬ 
ment Co. (United Paramount) and 
the RKO Theatres here. 

After losing out on “Onion 
Head,” which went to the MAC’S 
State instead of his Gopher, Ber¬ 
ger advised Warners by mail that 
he doesn't wish to bid any more 
for its pictures firstrun in Min¬ 
neapolis. 

The lone Warners picture ob¬ 
tained by the Gopher the past 
year was “Bomber B-52.” 

“Losing the picture ‘Onion Head’ 
sort of confirms my suspicions 
(that there are shenanigans in 
the handling of competitive bids) 
as outlined in my letter of last 
July 11,” Berger wrote to Art 
Anderson, the WB branch man¬ 
ager here. 

However, in the letter, Berger 
informed Anderson £ e 

changes his mind later he’ll so ad¬ 
vise the branch manager and that I 
if any of the company’s pictures 
become available other than by 
bidding he’ll be glad to negotiate 
for them. 

Berger -sent copies of his letter 
to United Paramount and RKO 
Theatres, 


Bamum Born Every Min 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Phineas T. Barnum is likely 
to hit the front pages again, 
with two production companies 
prepping biopix on early circus 
king. 

Martin Jurow and Richard 
Shepherd will do “The Fabu¬ 
lous Showman” as first on a 
multi-pix deal with Para¬ 
mount, to be shot both here 
and abroad. William C. 
Thomas also has been working 
on “There’s One Born Every 
Minute,” based on original by 
Martin Berkeley and Clark E. 
Reynolds. Frank Tashlin will 
direct film later in year. 

Philip Barry Jr. Pulls 
Switch in H’wood Debut; 
He Lores TV, Legit, Too 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 
Philip Barry Jr. is one tyro 
Hollywood producer who does not| 
have any harsh words to say about 
tv or the legit theatre, fields 
which propelled him into his 
present situation as contract pro¬ 
ducer at Metro. 

“As a matter of fact, the length 
of time it takes to make a motion 
picture terrifies me,” says Barry. 
“In television there is so little 
time that your enthusiasm and ex¬ 
citement carry you through from 
the beginning to the actual pre¬ 
sentation. In the theatre, you have 
the reaction of audiences during 
tryouts to stimulate you. I only 
hope we can sustain the same ex¬ 
citement in filming our picture.” 

Barry’s production is “The 
Mating Game,” screenplay by Wil¬ 
liam Roberts from the H. E. Bates 
novel, “The Darling Buds of May.” 
George Marshall is directing the 
cast headed by Debbie Reynolds, 
Paul Douglas and Tony RandalL 
Filming began this week. 

Barry doesn’t knock the theatre 
or tv to the. advantage of films be¬ 
cause he doesn’t believe there is 
any sharp division between the 
mediums anymore. 

“The entertainment business 
used to be departmentalized,” he 
says. “You were a picture man, a 
theatre man or—recently—a tv ex¬ 
pert Now there Is a more general 
concept that entertainment is en¬ 
tertainment and someone might 
might have something to offer to 
each medium.” 

Barry will exercise the clause in 
his Metro pact allowing him out¬ 
side activities to go to Broadway 
next winter to prepare production 
of a new play by Lorenzo Semple, 
as yet untitled as well as unfin¬ 
ished. Barry’s Metro pact allows 
him to do one play a year. 

One of a number of young men 
coming along in various phases 
of show business these days bear¬ 
ing a famous name, Barry seems 
to labor under no strain as the 
son of the late playwright He dis¬ 
claims any ability himself, al¬ 
though he has several credits in 
tv, “I am not a creative person in 
the writing sense,” he says. "If I 
have any ability, it is an editorial 
sense, probably inherited or ab¬ 
sorbed from association with my 
father.” 


Compromise Ends Par, 
Shochiku‘10 CV Dispute 

Tokyo, Sept 23. 

Long pending deadlock on clos¬ 
ing dates of “Ten Commandments” 
in Tokyo and Osaka ended in a 
compromise between Paramount 
and Shochiku with the latter ac¬ 
cepting closing dates of Sept. 19 at 
Shochiku Picadilly in Tokyo and 
Oct 13 for Namba Daigeki in 
Osaka. Conflict arose when Par in¬ 
sisted on closing date of Oct. 7 in 
both cities and Shochiku asked for 
Sept. 19 dates. 

As of Sept. 5, blockbuster earned 
100 million yen ($280,000) for 25 
weeks in Tokyo and half that 
amount in Osaka, making it one of 
all-time grosser® in Japan and earn¬ 
ing a bonus import license for 
1 Paramount j 


Buffalo Subtracts Two 

Buffalo, Sept. 30. 

Two Buffalo neighborhood thea¬ 
tres are to be razed, per the own¬ 
ers. 

The 35-year-old Central Park in 
the North Park Section which has 
been dark since last spring will 
give way to a gas station. At the 
same time, Dipson Theatres re¬ 
vealed that the 40-year-old Capi¬ 
tol on the South Side, of town is 
due to come down “to save taxes.” 
It has been closed three years. 

Irv Sochin Exits 
At Rank-Yank 

Irving Sochin, general sales man¬ 
ager for Rank Film Distributors of 
America, resigned last week effec¬ 
tive October 3. He had been with 
the Rank outfit in the States since 
its inception and had created its 
sales structure. 

News of Sochin’s resignation 
came from the Rank office via a 
one-sentence statement which said 
that Kenneth N. Hargreaves, RFDA 
prez, announced “with regret” So- 
chin’s resignation. 

There were no indications im¬ 
mediately of what had caused this 
abrupt split. Sochin insisted his 
parting with Rank was “amicable.” 
Hargreaves has left for London. 
It’s known, however, that Sochin 
and Hargreaves haven’t been see¬ 
ing eye-to-eye for some time. Dur¬ 
ing Sochin’s tenure with Rank, the 
British outfit had suffered severely 
from a shortage of product suitable 
to the U. S. mart. The only big 
film that came through was “Pur¬ 
suit of the Graf Spee.” Recently, 
Rank found favor with its “Bolshoi 
BaUet” release,. which it acquired 
from the outside. British org has 
some some important films coming 
up, including “A Night to Re¬ 
member.” 

Sochin joined Rank as of Jan. 1, 
1957, Prior to that, he had been 
with Universal as shorts subjects 
and newsreel sales manager. Rank 
outfit in the U. S. so far hasn’t 
proved to be a money-maker, 
though film rentals do cover imme¬ 
diate expenses like salaries, etc. 
Counting in prints, advertising 
[and other costs, the Rank losses 
for the first year are said to run 
close to $1,000,000. In the recently- 
published Rank financial statement 
I there were no details regarding the 
jj. S. operation. 


Capital Cireait 

55S Continued from ptfe 1 —^ 

to put those words into the lines 
of the Republican national chair¬ 
man in his play. 


Teichmann left Washington Sun¬ 
day (28) for farther tryouts in 
Philadelphia, relieved he hadn’t 
I been stoned locally. 

Peggy Wood ignited his fears. 

! There is a line Mias Wood haa in 
“509” which goes: 

“Roosevelt—lie was a traitor to his 
CLASS.” But Miss Wood, described 
as a lifelong Republican by Teich- 
mann, delivered the line more 
than once like this: “Roosevelt— 
he was a traitor to his COUNTRY.” 

“If she doesn’t stop that ” said 
Teichmann, “somebody is going to 
kill me.” 


Front the Casino Royal, where 
he headed a revue here, Dave 
Gardner passed along this message 
to his followers, whoever they are: 

“The glory of working in thought 
patterns is they can never say he 
said anything. They can only say 
I thought he thought.” 

Fearless newshens here have ar¬ 
ranged a double bill for Oct. 16. 

The Women’s National Press 
Club has set up a luncheon jointly 
honoring Peter Ustinov and Tallu¬ 
lah Bankhead. 

On that date, Ustinov’s “Roman¬ 
off and Juliet” will be at the Na¬ 
tional Theatre, while Tallu’s “Crazy 
October” will be preeming at the 
Shubert 

Ustinov, by the way, wired his 
advance pressagent, Joe Shea: 
“Please, no Washington hotels un¬ 
dergoing repairs. 

In Detroit, where “Romanoff” 
runs until Oct. 12, Ustinoff is in 
the Sheraton-Cadillac, currently be¬ 
ing undermined by a riveting ma¬ 
chine. 

Ustinov reports that it’s tough 
on the nerves of the ruler of a 
shaky littls country. 


From Kabuki to Bunraku 

Continued from, pace 2 


prez Kunizo Matsuo of the Sen- 
tochi Theatrical Co., Ltd., who is 
acting as Ilurok’s counterpart in 
Japan. Matsuo said the kabuki 
tour is slated for two months to co¬ 
incide with the celebration of 100 
years of diplomatic relations be¬ 
tween the U. S. and Japan. Ten¬ 
tatively penciled into plans are 
appearance in New York, Chicago, 
Los Angeles and San Francisco. 
The troupe is expected to number 
between 60 and 70. 

Asked how he intended to over¬ 
come the staggering transporta¬ 
tion expenses which have turned 
back ambitious impresarios in the 
past, Matsuo declared with certain¬ 
ty that he expected the Japanese 
government to foot the bill. At 
the suggestion of a high govern¬ 
ment official, he has already sub¬ 
mitted an application and budget 
estimate. Because of the centen¬ 
nial program, Matsuo is confident 
travel expenses will be granted. 

The tour of the OSK girls, Mat¬ 
suo revealed, is already firm. He 
said his pact with Hurok calls for 
a 10-week schedule with six weeks 
of options. American musicians 
will be utilized, but otherwise the 
program will be 4 all-Japanese. Mat¬ 
suo regarded the latter deal as 
having more commercial potential 
since these girls were introduced 
to American audiences in “Sayo- 
nara.” 

There is a possibility that 60 to 
80 additional OSK girls will line 
up at the American Embassy in 
Tokyo for visas. Through night 
club talent scout Tom Ball, a re¬ 
cent Japan visitor, Beverly Hills 
realtor Sandy Adler has been ne¬ 
gotiating with Matsuo for an array 
of girls to fill the stage of the 
Moulin Rouge nitery in Hollywood 
and a bistro in Las Vegas with a 
contract of 10 weeks plus 16 Weeks 
of options. 

Ball’s Girl Revue 

Returning here several months 
ago. Ball set up house and proceed¬ 
ed on his brushbeating mission 
armed with contracts. Having 
wrapped together a Japanese show 
last year that played choice loca¬ 
tions on Hie nitery circuit for eight 
and a half months under the bill- 
! ing of “Geisha Girl Revue,” Ball 
lined up talent for a second edi¬ 
tion. 

With some repeat performers 
and some new faces. Ball’s second 
“Geisha Girl Revue” will open at 
the Saxony Hotel in Miami Beach 
for the winter season and then 
goes into the Thunderbird in Las 
Vegas for six or eight weeks before 
another stint at the Riverside. 

A contract with the Toho Com¬ 
pany, Ltd., was signed by New 
York theatrical ^attorney Albert 
3. Gins for the famed Takarazuka 
Girls’ Troupe to make its first post¬ 
war mainland American tour next 
year, the first of four consecutive 
annual U. S. junkets. This pact 
calls for 36 cities in 13 weeks in¬ 
cluding the Metropolitan Opera 
House in New York. However, it’s 
believed that this project to still 
contingent on Gins and his asso¬ 
ciates securing the necessary play- 
dates and guarantees. 

NBC Spee, Too 

Biggest single hypo for Japanese 
entertainment is calculated to be 
a one-hour NBC “special” Feb. 1. 
NBC producer-director Alan Hand- 
ley recently surveyed available 
talent while in Japan and returned 
to the U. S. to convey his enthusi¬ 
asm to NBC and the Chevrolet 
sponsors. Some 15 Japanese per¬ 
formers will fly to the U. S. for a 
'vyeek of rehearsals and the actual 
telecast which wil originate at the 
NBC color studios in Burbank. The 
acts will be interlaced with com¬ 
mentary by Shirley MacLaine and 
a male star, tentatively David 
Niven or Robert Cummings. 

Back on the classic side, Colum¬ 
bia U. professor and playwright 
Maurice Valency is here investigat¬ 
ing the possibility of bringing bun¬ 
raku puppets to Broadway. Hav¬ 
ing been stimulated by lectures on 
the subject by a Japanese student, 
he is looking Into bunraku poten¬ 
tial while here on a Ford Founda¬ 
tion mission. 

Valency feels that Jfroadway in¬ 
tellect and curiosity would absorb 
this esoteric dramatic form. He 
sees it as being suitable for a short 
run at an intimate Broadway house 
with a tv shot and a tour following. 
The “Garry Moore Show” has al¬ 
ready expressed interest After 
watching a bunraku- appearance on 
tv from Tokyo, Valency felt that 
with a humorous and gifted Eng¬ 


lish-language narrator, bunraku has 
commercial possibilities* 

Adapter of the current Lunt-Fon- 
tanne hit, “The Visit,” Valency 
would do the scripting if the ven¬ 
ture materializes. He reps several 
Broadway producers who would 
back the project if he gives the 
word. Valency is now ogling the 
puppets at their home base at the 
Bunraku-za in Osaka. 


USSR Turnover 

Continued from page 1 

three years) on charges that he 
had committed a “gross violation of 
censorship rules.” Essoyan had 
done occasional broadcasts to fill in 
for this NBC correspondent. 

The viruses particularly hit Wil¬ 
liam Jordan of the N.Y. Times who 
was forced to leave for Helsinki, 
Finland, to seek appropriate med¬ 
ical attention^ Also briefly out of 
action was Howard Sochurek, Life 
photographer, after a trip in the 
remote Central Asian region of the 
U.S.S.R. 


The *E1’ With It! 

Speaking of television, Moscow 
tv has subtle ways of getting across 
its “messages” about the U.S. Re¬ 
cently a half-hour documentary 
film was shown on a congress of 
architects which had been held 
during the summer in Moscow. 
It was attended by leading archi¬ 
tects of. many nations, including 
the United States, who discussed 
their countries’ plans for civic im¬ 
provement. There were Soviet ex¬ 
hibits. The documentary tv showed 
all this and added a few library 
film clips of the various citie rep¬ 
resented. 

A brief scene of New York ran 
this way: a glimpse of the sky¬ 
scrapers; a series of shots of 
crowded Third Avenue buildings 
with the old elevated trains in the 
background and full sound of the 
roar of the *ET; closeups of the 
noisy TEl’ trains with their clatter 
oh in realistic volume. Then came 
the “kicker” picture: a woman 
lying in bed, holding her head, a 
contorted expression on her face 
at the sleep-depriving noise of the 
elevated trains. It looked like the 
most evocative Anacin commercial. 

No one bothered to explain that 
it’s been some years since the “El” 
has been removed and quiet reigns 
on Third Avenue. 


More TV 

In these days of tension between 
east and west over the crisis in 
the Forinosan straits, a recent tr 
offering (to quote the television 
program notes published in the 
Evening Moscow newspaper) was: 
“‘Alive Forever,* a program on 26 
^Commissars in Baku murdered by 
the British in the Civil War.” 


No Like Gunther’s Book 

The Russians have finally re¬ 
viewed John Gunther’s book, “In¬ 
side Russia Today.” To no one’s 
surprise, they don’t like It. A re¬ 
view in the Literary Gazette Was 
entitled “Gunther’s Crooked Mir¬ 
ror,” and described the author’s 
aim this way: “to portray the So¬ 
viet Union in as unseemly a light 
as possible.” The Soviet paper com¬ 
plained that Gunther tried to write 
a detailed book about Russia after 
having only spent several weeks 
in the USSR. Gunther was said to 
write about Marxism-Leninism in 
vocabulary • of comic strips. Ex¬ 
amples of what Literary Gazette 
termed errors in Gunther’s book 
were given: 

. The emblem of the Moscow Art 
Theatre was described by Gunther 
as being a dove. Actually the em¬ 
blem is a sea gull. 

The novel “Young Guards” was 
described by Gunther as taking 
place during the Civil War. Actual¬ 
ly the scene was laid duringsWorld 
War II. 


Bachman’s Chi Switch 

Chicago, Sept. 30. 

Robert Bachman, exec with Al¬ 
liance Theatres, switched last week 
to Park Heights Theatre Corp., 
which plans a 1,200-car suburban 
ozoner on which construction has 
just begun. Chief bankroller is ex¬ 
ploitation pix distributor Irwin 
Joseph. 

Bachman had been manager of 
Alliance’s midwest drive-in divi¬ 
sion, overseeing 26 units for ths 
Circuit 




Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


i&Pr 


17 


Five Reasons Why They're 


High on The 

Decks 

Ran 

RED! 


* » * 
% '• i 


A TRUE STORY I HLMED ENTIRELY AT SEA I 


V JAM-PACKED WITH THRILLS I 
MOVES PRODUCERS ANDREW AND 
VIRGINIA STONE TO THE FORE¬ 
FRONT IN SUSPENSE ENTERTAINMENT!” 

—Hollywood Reporter 

,. ."BUILDS TO VIOLENT CLIMAXI” 

—M.P. Exhibitor 


AND MORE ! 

/ "Can-be counted on at box-office .”—Film Daily 

/ "Intensely melodramatic !”—Boxoffice 

"Action packed \”—M. P. Herald 

"Pure adventure. Superior 
exploitation pictur e.”— Variety 











IS 


ncnnuH 


Picture Grosses 


Balto B.O. Bogs Down 
Bat ‘Yankees’ Good 11G; 
‘Cat’Nice $10,000,5th 

Baltimore, Sept 30. 

Pix biz took a dip this frame, 
and exhibs are playing the wait- 
ing game, hoping the lull won’t 
last. “Cat on Hot Tin Roof” atj 
the Stanley still is nice in fifth 
round. “Damn Yankees” at the 
Century looms good. Others are 
mild to okay mostly. “Kings Go 
Forth” in third at the Mayfair 
shapes oke. “Big Country” looks 
passable in seventh stanza at the 
Hipp. 

Estimates for This Week 

Century (R-F) (3,100; 50-$1.25)— 
“Damn Yankees” (WB). Good $11,- 
000. Last week, “Street Car 
Named Desire” (20th) (reissue), 
$6,500. 

Cinema (Schwaber) (460; 50- 

$1.25)—“Pantaloons” (UMP) (2d 
wk). Low $2,000 after $2,400 in 
first. 

Film Centre (R-F) (890; $1.50- 
$2.50)—“Gigi” (M-G) (12th wk). 

Oke $6,500 after $7,000 in 11th 
week. 

Five West (Schwaber) (460; 50- 
$1.25) — “Admirable Crichton” 
(Col). Tepid $2,000. Last week, 
“Law and Disorder” (Cont) (2d 
wk), same. 

Hippodrome (R-F) (2,300; 50- 

$1.25)—"Big Country” (UA) (7th 
wk). Oke $5,000 after $6,500 in 
sixth. 

Little (R-F) (300; 50-$1.25)— 

“Matchmaker” (Par) (8th wk). Nice 
$2,000 after $2,500 in seventh 
Week. 

Mayfair (R-F) (900; 50-$1.50)— 
“Kings Go Forth” (UA) (3d wk). 
Okay $6,000 after $7,000 in second. 

New (R-F) (1,600; $1.50-$2.50)— 
“South Pacific” (20th) (26th wk). 
Down to $5,000 after oke $5,500 in 
previous week. 

Playhouse (Schwaber) (460; 50- 
$1.25)—“Escapade” (Indie). (2d wk). 
Slow $2,009 after $2,400 for 
opener. 

Stanley (R-F) (3,200; $1.25-$1.80) 
—“Cat on Hot Tin Roof’ (M-G) 
(5th wk). Nice $10,000 after $12,- 
000 in fourth. . 

Town (R-F) (1,125; 5Q-$1.25)— 
“Raw Wind in Eden” (U). Fair 
$5,000. Last week, “Certain 
Smile” (20th), ditto. 


‘Heaven’ High $16,000, 
Denver; ‘Cat’ 9G, 5th 

Denver, Sept 30. 

Film boxoffice ranges from fair¬ 
ly good to big in most first-runs 
here this stanza. Biggest coin to¬ 
tal is going to “Night Heaven Fell,” 
rated great at Paramount. “Damn 
Yankees” shapes fancy at Center 
in second round.- .“Camp on Blood 
Island” is fairly good at the Den¬ 
ver. “Cat on Hot Tin Roof’ looks 
good at Orpheum in fifth round. 

Estimates for This Week 

Centre (Fox) (1,247; 90-$1.50)— 
'•Damn Yankees” (WB) (2d wk). 
Fancy $11,000. Stays on. Last 
week, $17,000. 

Denham (Cockrill) (1,429; $1.25- 
$2.50)—“Gigi” (M-G) (3d wk). 

Fine $10,000. Holding. Last week, 

$ 12 , 000 . 

Denver (Fox) (2,586; 70-90)— 
“Camp on Blood Island” (Col) and 
“Snorkel” (Col). Fairly good 
$9,500 or close. Last week, “Ha r ry 
Black and Tiger” (20th) and 
“Mark of Zorro” (20th) (reissue), 
$10,500. 

Orpheum (RKO) (2,596; 90-$1^0) 
—"Cat on Hot Tin Roof’ (M-G) 
(5th Wk). Good $9,000 or there¬ 
abouts. Last week, $10,000. 

Paramount (Wolfberg) (2,200; 70- 
00)—"Night Heaven Fell” (Kings) 
and "Cross-Up” (UA). Very big 
$16,000. Continues on. Last week, 
“Big Country” (UA> (4th wk), $14,- 
000 . 

Tabor (Fox) (930; $1.25-$2.50)— 
“South Pacific” (20th) (23d wk). 
Good $3,800. Stays on. Last week, 
$4,000. 


PHILADELPHIA 

(Continued from page 9) ] 

000 or near. Last week, “Raw Wind 
in Eden” (U), $8,000. 

Studio (Goldberg) (385; 94-$1.49) 
—“Fire Under Her Skin” (Indie). 
So-so $3,600. Last week, “Diary of 
Gestapo Agent” (Indie), $4,000. 

Trans-Lux (T-L) (500; 99-$1.80)— 
“Reluctant Debuante” (M-G). Styl¬ 
ish $12,000. Last week, “Vikings’* 
(UA) (13th wk), $3,300 in 6 days. 

Viking (Sley) (1,000; 99-$1.49)— 
“Harry Black and Tiger” (20th) (2d 
wk). Mild $5,600. Last week, 
$7,200. 

World (Pathe) (604; 95-$1.80)— 
“Night Heaven Fell” (Kings) (5th 
wk). Good $4,0C0. Last week, 
$5,200. 


‘Country’ Bangnp 15G, 
Buff; ‘Yankees’ $11,000 

Buffalo, Sept. 30. 

Boxoffice take is uneven in the 
current session here but there are 
some strong spots. One of. the 
brightest newcomers is “Damn 
Yankees,” which is rated lively at 
the Center. “Big Country” looks 
okay at the Buffalo. “Cat on Hot 
Tin Roof’ shapes neat in fifth 
round at the Teck. “South Pacific” 
Still is okay in 19th session at the 
Century. 

Estimates for This Week 

Buffalo (Loew) (3,500; - 70-$1.25> 
—“Big Country” (UA). Good $15,- 
000. Last week, “Dunkirk” (M-G) 
and “Andy Hardy Comes Home” 
(M-G), $7,500 in 5V6 days. 

Center (AB-PT) (2,000; 70-90)— 
“Damn Yankees” (WB). Lively 
$11,000. Last week, “Harry Black 
and Tiger” (20th) and “Ghost 
Diver” (Indie), $6,000. 

Century (UATC) (1,410; $1.50-$3) 
—“South Pacific” (20th) (19th wk). 
Okay $7,000. Last week, $7,400. 

Lafayette (Basil) (3,000; 70-90)— 
“Raw Wind In Eden” (U) and 
“Saga of Hemp Brown” (U). Weak- 
ish $8,000 or near. Last week, 
“Frankenstein 1970” (AA) and 
“Spy in the Sky” (AA), $11,000. 

Paramount (ABPT) (3,000; 70-90) 
—“Camp on Blood Island” (Col) 
and “The Snorkel” (Col). Good 
$10,500. Last week, “Streetcar 
Named Desire” (20th) (reissue), 
$ 12 , 000 . 

Teck (Loew) (1,200; 70-$1.25)— 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof* (5th wk). 
Neat $7,000 or near. Last week, 
$9,200. 

Cinema (Martina) (450; 70-90)— 
"Madame Butterfly” (Indie) (2d 
wk). Okay $2,000. Last week, 
$2,500. 


CHICAGO 


(Continued from page 9) 

(I4th wk). Windup session of nine 
days was strong $38,000. 

Oriental (Indie) (3,400; 90-$1.50) 
—“Certain Smile” (20th). Dandy 
$27,000. Last week* “Imitation 
General” (M-G) (3d wk), $17,500. 


Palace (SW-Cinerama) (1,434; 
$1.25-$3.40)—“South Seas Adven¬ 
ture” . (Cinerama) (2d wk). Initial 
week ended Sept. 26 with a dandy 
$34,000. Second round is holding 
big. 

Roosevelt (B&K) (1,400; 90-$1.80) 
—“Defiant Ones” (UA) (7th wk). 
Closing sesh getting a tall $14,000. 
Last week, $15*000. 

State-Lake (B&K) (2,400; 90- 
$1.80)—“Big Country” (UA) (6th 
wk). Okay $13,500. Last week, 
$15,000. 

Snrf (H&E Balaban) (685; $1.50) 
—"Your Past Is Showing” (Rank) 
(3d wk). Fair $3,300* Last week, 
$6,600. 

Todd’s Cinestage (Todd) (1,036; 
$1.75-$3.50)—“Around World” (UA) 
(78th wk). Smash $13,600. Last 


week, $13,800. 

United Artists (B&K) (1,700; 90- 
$1.80)—*“Damn Yankees” (WB). Big 
$19,000. Last week, “Indiscreet” 
(WB) (7th wk), $14^00. 

Woods (Essaness) (1,200; 90- 

$1.50)—“Harry Black and Tiger” 
(20th) (2d wk). Fair $10,000, Last 
week, $22,000. 

World (Teitel) (606; 90)—“Man 
in Raincoat” (Union) (2d wk). Mild 
$3,200. Last week, $4,800. 


KANSAS CITY 

(Continued from page 8) 
Hardy Comes Home” (M-G). Dull 
$5,500. Last week, “Tale of Two 
Cities” (Rank) and “Terror in 
Texas Town” (UA), $5,000. 

Missouri (SW-Cinerama) (1,194; 
$1.25-$2) — “Windjammer?* (NT) 
(5th wk). Settled down around 
okay $10,000. Last week, ditto. 

Paramount (UP) (1,900; 75-90)— 
“The Matchmaker*’ (Par). Okay 
$7,000. Last week, “Night Heaven 
Fell” (Kings) (2d wk), $7,500. 

Roxy (Durwood) (879; 90-$1.50) 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof’ (M-G) (5th 
wk). Handsome $6,000. Last week, 
$7,000. 

Rockhill (Little Art Theatres) 
(750; 75-90)—“Gates of Paris” (Lo- 
pert) and “Picasso” (Indie) playing 
only Friday, Saturday and Sun¬ 
days with films through October, 
as grand opera presented by Lyric 
Opera Co. takes over Mondays; 
through Thursdays. “Gates” oke 
$1,000. Last week, “The Awaken¬ 
ing” (Kings) $1,800. ' 

Uptown, Fairway, Granada (Fox 
Midwest) (2,043, 700, 1,217; 75-90) 
—“Raw Wind in Eden” (U) and 
“Saga of Hemp Brown” (U). Mod¬ 
est $8,500. Last week, “Attila” 
(Indie) and ’“Flaming Frontier’ 
(20th) f $10,000. 


I^SsUErri _ . __ Wednesday, October 1, 1953 


7ANKEES’FANCY 23G, 
D.C.; ‘CAT $18,000,4TH 

Washington, Sept. 30. 

“Damn Yankees,” with particular 
interest here because it gives the 
local hall club more credit than it 
deserves, shapes standout with 
a big take at two Stanley-Warner 
houses. Also new, “Law and Dis¬ 
order” shapes good at the Mac- 
Arthur. “Cat bri Hot Tin Roof,” 
“Me and Colonel” and “Big Coun¬ 
try” are the best combined money¬ 
makers on the stem in weeks. 
“Big Country” winds up six stanzas 
with a mighty nice take. 

Estimates for This Week 

Ambassador-Metropolitan (SW) 
(1,490; 1,000; 90-$1.25)—“Damn 

Yankees” (WB). Winner with big 
$23,000. Last week, ‘*Wind Across 
Everglades” (WB), $11,800. 

Apex (K-B) (940; 60-90)—“Naked 
Eye” (Indie) (2d wk). Okay $2,500. 
Last week, $5,000. 

Capitol (Loew) (3,434; 90-$1.25) 
—“Cat on Hot Tin Roof” (M-G) 
(4th wk). Fat $18,000. Last week, 
$24,000. Stays. 

Columbia (Loew) (904; $1.25- 
$2.50)—“Gigi” (M-G) (14th wk). 
Oke $8,00(J after three straight 
weeks of $9,000; continues. 

Keith’s (RKO) (1,850; 90-$1.25)— 
“Me and Colonel” (Col) (3d wk). 
Still good'at $11,000 after $14,000 
in second. Remains on. 

MacArthur (K-B) (900; $1.10)— 
“Law and Disorder” (Indie). Good 
$5,000. Last week, “Admirable 
Crichton” (Col) (3d wk), $3,400. 

Ontario (K-B) (1,240; 90-$1.25)— 
“Arsenic and Old Lace” (Indie) and 
“Inspector General” (Indie) (reis¬ 
sues). Poor $5,000. Last week, 
“This Angry Age” (Col), $3,000. 

Palace (Loew) (2,390; 90-$1.25)— 
“Big Country” (UA) (6 th wk). 
Nice $12,000 following $13,000 for 
fifth week. 

Plaza (T-L) (276; 90-$1.50)— 

“God Created Woman” (Kings) 
(47th wk). Attracting $1,900 in 
final week, same as last week, as 
marathon run ends. 

Trans-Lux (T-L) (600; $1.25- 

$2.50)—“Bridge on River Kwai” 
(Col). (29th wk). Dropping to 
$4,000 after $4,500 but stays on. 

Uptown (SW) (lilQO; $1.25-$2.50) 
—“South Pacafic” (20th) (26th wk). 
Nice $8,500. Last week, same. 

Warner (SW-Cinerama) (1,300; 
$1.25-$2.40)—“Search for Para¬ 
dise” (Cinerama) (38th wk). Busi¬ 
ness looking up as it moves into 
its final two weeks with $12,000.: 
Last week, $10,500. 


PORTLAND, ORE. 

(Continued from page 9) 
“Gigi” (M-G) (6th wk). Tall $8,000 
or near. Last week, $9,200. 

Liberty (Hamrick) (1, 865; $1- 
$1.50)—“Damn Yankees” (WB) and 
“Last of Fast Guns” (U). So-so 
$7,000 or close. Last week, “Cat 
on Hot Tin Roof” (M-G) (4th wk), 
$6,300. 

Orpheum (Evergreen) (1,600; $1- 
$1.50)—“Harry Black and Tiger” 
(20th) and “Sierra Baron” (20th). 
Fair $6,000. Last week, “Camp On 
Blood Island” (Col) and “Snorkel” 
(Col); $3,300. . 

Paramount (Port-Par) (3,400; $1- 
$1.50) — “Liane, Jungle Goddess” 
(Indie) and “Time Lock” (Indie). 
Dull $4,500. Last week,- “Reluctant 
Debutante” (M-G) and “Cross-Up” 
(UA) (2d wk), $5,500. 


SAN FRANCISCO 

(Continued from page 8) 

Hep $16,000 or over. Last week, 
$11,400, 

Presidio (Hardy-Parsons) (774; 
$1.25-$L50)—“Law and Disorder” 
(Indie). Fair $3,000. Last week, 
“Follies Bergere” (Indie) (2d wk), 
$2,600. 

Vogue (S. F. Theatres) (364; 
$1.25) — “Deadlier Than Male” 
(Indie). Oke $3,000. Last week, 
“Porte Des Lilas” (Indie) (2d wk), 
$2,800. 

Coronet (United California) 
(1,250; $1.50-$3.75) — "Around 
World In 80 Days” (UA) (92d wk). 
Lively $12,000. Last week, $14,000. 

Alexandria (United California) 
(1,170; $1.5-$3.50>—“South Pacific” 
(20th) (13th wk). Nice $16,000. Last 
week, $18,000. 


BOSTON 

(Continued from page 8) 
—“South Pacific” (20th) (25th wk). 
Torrid $17,000. Last week, ditto. 

Trans-Lux (T-L) (730; 75-$1.25) 
—“King of Khyber Rifles” and 
“Untamed” (reissues). Oke $3,500. 
Last week, “Bad Seed” (WB) and 
“Tea And Sympathy” CM-G) (re¬ 
issues), $3,200. 

Orpheum (Loew) (2,900; 90- 

$1.50)—“Big Country” (UA) (6th 
wk)f Nice $10,000. Last week, $10,- 
500, over estimates. 

State (Loew) (3,600; 75-$1.25)— 
"Cat On Hot Tin Roof” (M-G) (6th 
wk). Smash $12,000. Last week, 
$12,500, above forecast. 


BROADWAY 

(Continued from page 9) 
“Windom’s Way” (Rank). Opened 
yesterday (Tues.) In ahead, “Me 
and Colonel” (Col) (5th wk-6 days), 
was solid $17,000 after $19,000 for 
fourth full week. 

Royale (Loew) (934; $1.50-$3)— 
“Gigi” (M-G) (20th wk). The 19th 
session completed Saturday (27) 
was capacity $19,300. The 18th 
week was $21,500, being helped by 
extra show. 

Paramount (AB-PT) (3,6J55; $1- 
$2)—“Harry Black and Tiger” 
(20th) (2d-final wk). Makes way 
for invitation preem of “Barbarian 
and Geisha” (20th) tomorrow 
(Thurs.). The final week looks like 
fair $21,000. First week, $30,000. 

Fifth Ave. Cinema (R&B) (250; 
$1.25-$1.80) — “Pather Panchali” 
(Harrison) (2d wk). First week 
ended Sunday (28) hit new house 
record .here of $7,200, remarkable 
biz for such a small house. Pic 
established new attendance marks 
here for weekdays and matinees. 

Paris (Pathe Cinema) (568; 90- 
$1.80)-^-“Crime and Punishment” 
(Kings) (3d wk). Second frame 
ended Monday (29) was great $8,000 
after $10,000 for opener. 

Radio City Music Hall (Rocke¬ 
fellers) (6,200; 99-$2.75)—“Cat on 
Hot Tin Roof” (M-G) with stage- 
show (2d wk). First holdover ses¬ 
sion ending today' (Wed.) looks 
to reach big $158,000. Opening 
week was $174,000. Stays. 

Rivoli (UAT) (1,545; $1.25-$3.50) 
—“Around World” (UA) (103d wk). 
The 102d week ended yesterday 
(Tues.) held at big $39,000 on two- 
a-day basis, same as 101st stanza. 
“South Pacific” (20th) comes in 
here from the Criterion Oct. 6. 

Plaza (Lopert) (525; $1.50-$2)— 
“La Parisienne” (UA) (10th wk). 
The ninth week ended yesterday 
(Tues.) was oke $6,000 after $7,500 
for eighth round. Stays on, with 
“Inspector Maigret” (Lope) due 
in Oct. 8. 

Roxy (Indie) (5,705; 90-$2.50)— 
“Damn Yankees” (WB) and stage- 
show. First session ending tomor¬ 
row (Thurs.) looks to hit wow 
$97,000, with new stageshow pol¬ 
icy. House reopened Friday (26) 
after 22 weeks of “Windjammer” 
(NT), first Cinemiracle production. 
Showing on initial week is regarded 
as remarkable since the house had 
been closed for nearly a week and 
launched a new policy. 

State (Loew) (3,450; 50-$1.75)— 
“Raw Wind in Eden” (U) (2d wk). 
This round ending Friday (3) looks 
like okay $15,000 after nice $25,- 
000 opening week. “Decks Ran 
Red” (M-G) opens here next 

Rialto (Bran*) (594; 75-$1.50)— 
“Shameless Sex” (Mishkin) (3d wk). 
Held at sock $11,000 in second 
round ended Friday (26) after $15,- 
000 opening week, second biggest 
ever at house.. 

Sutton (R&B) (561; 95-$1.75)— 
“Town Like Alice” (Rank) (2d wk). 
First stanza ended Saturday (27) 
hit good $5,200. 

Trans-Lux 52d St. (T-L) (540; $1- 
$1.50)—“Case of Dr. Laurent” 
(T-L) (15th wk). The 14th round 
ended yesterday (Tues.) was sturdy 
$7,500. The 13th week, $9,000. 
Looks to stay on through October. 

Victoria (City Inv.) (1,003; 50-$2) 
—"Defiant Ones” (UA) (2d wk). 
Initial frame ended yesterday 
(Tues.) was mighty $39,000 or near. 
In ahead, “La Parisienne” (UA) 
(8th wk), $14,000. 

Warner (SW-Cinerama) (1,600; 
$1.80-$3.50)—“South Seas Adven¬ 
ture” (Cinerama) (11th wk). The 
10th week ended Saturday (27) was 
a big $26,700 after $27,800 for ninth 
stanza. 


‘Yankees’ Giant $11,000, 
Indpls.; ‘Pacific’ 9G, 23d 

Indianapolis, Sept. 30. 

Downtown biz remains at a gen¬ 
erally moderate level here despite 
closing of the 3,200-seat Indiana 
because of a product shortage. 
However, “Damn Yankees” looks 
terrific at Keith’s and looks set 
for a long run. “Cat on Hot Tin 
Roof” is okay in fifth stanza at 
Loew’s. “Harry Black and Tiger” 
is only fair at the Circle. 

Estimates for This Week 

Circle (Coockrill-Dolle) (2,800; 
75-90)—“Harry Black and Tiger” 
(20th) and “Cattle Empire” (20th). 
Fair $8,000. Last week, “Never 
Love Stranger” (AA) and “Wild 
Heritage” (U), $6,500. 

Keith’s (C-D) (1,300; 75-901 — 
“Damn Yankees” (WB). Wow $11,- 
000. Last week, “Raw ! Wind in 
Eden” (U), $7,000. 

Loew’s (Loew) (2,427; 75-90) — 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof” (M-G) (5th j 
wk). Neat $6,000. Last week, I 
$7,000. 

Lyric (C-D) (850; $1.25-$2.20) — 
“South Pacific” X20th) (23d wk). 
Steady $9,000. Last week, same, j 


Italo Gort. Asked What 
It Plans Doing to Aid 
Films Vs. Tele Menace 

Rome, Sept. 23. 

The Italian government, through 
the Ministers of Finance, Industry 
and the Interior, have been formal¬ 
ly asked to reveal what it plans to 
do in defending the Italian film in¬ 
dustry from the growing menace of 
television. Formal plea has been 
presented in the. Italian chamber 
Of deputies by Giuseppe Brusasca, 
onetime government Undersecre¬ 
tary for Entertainment. 

In his petition, Brusasca warns 
of the dangers facing film produc¬ 
tion and the creative side of the 
industry if steps are not taken to 
curb tele which is merely “a means 
of transmission.” 

The deupty asks that the govern¬ 
ment take rapid steps to alleviate 
the fiscal burden of the film indus¬ 
try. Also to remove other dated 
and dangerous controls which run 
the risk of “irreparably” damag¬ 
ing the Italian film industry. 


Timmra Plans 

Continued from page 2 

Bailey, the U.S. Government, or 
the Baumholder Officers’ Club. If 
Uncle Sam transfers Bailey back 
to the States, Rogers can bring 
suit in the U.S. for damages there. 

Local reaction is that the court- 
martial “greatly suprised” the 250 
i spectators that jammed the court 
in that Bailey pleaded innocent to 
the charge of. “inflicting grievous 
bodily harm” on Rogers and was 
found not guilty on two charges of 
! felonious assault and “conduct un¬ 
becoming an officer and gentle¬ 
man.” The seven-man, high offi¬ 
cers’ court overruled defense 
Major E. M. Chandler’s plea for 
dismissal of all charges because of 
temporary insanity. Major Bailey 
had brought two colonels as char¬ 
acter witnesses. Dr. George Os¬ 
wald, of the Baumholder dispens¬ 
ary, testified Rogers “had alcoholic 
odor” when brought for treatment 
following the pummeling allegedly 
inflicted by Bailey, although Rog¬ 
ers testified he doesn’t drink or 
smoke. 

Major Bailey claimed Rogers’ 
unit, after having done two previ¬ 
ous shows at the EM and NCO 
Clubs, had been late for the mid¬ 
night show at the Officers’ Club 
and “had been drinking.” Rogers 
maintained the attack was com¬ 
pletely unjustified. (The original 
Variety report, which first broke 
the story, had it that Major Bailey 
took Rogers into a side room for 
the beating; abused^ him for “being 
late”; called him “nigger” and 
other derogatory terms; and that 
Rogers was taken to the Wiese- 
baden Air Force Hospital for treat¬ 
ment.) 

Sentence of the court-martial Is 
subject to review. 

Rogers is remaining in Germany 
to start his civil action and is also 
slated for. an appearance Oct. 11 
on the Hessischer Rundfunk Tele¬ 
vision. (His agents in New York, 
the William Morris office, have 
some backlogged bookings, which 
will probably be part, of Rogers* 
civil suit damage claims). 

The comedian termed the out¬ 
come of the trial—the $1,000 fine— 
“the most disgusting thing that 
has ever happened to me.” 


Par Marketeers Gather 

, Los Angeles, Sept. 30. 

paramount launches third in a 
series of worldwide marketing- 
merchandising meets here Thurs¬ 
day (2) when George Weltner, 
global sales vp, hosts 100 western 
circuit execs, indie exhibs and 
press at kickoff luncheon held at 
Ambassador Hotel. Previous ses¬ 
sions were held in N.Y. and Tor¬ 
onto. 

Sidney Deneau, western sales 
manager, will conduct two-day 
conclave, arriving today from the 
east with Weltner and Jerry 
Pickman, ad-pub-exploitation vp. 
Among studio execs who will par¬ 
ticipate in discussions of com¬ 
pany’s upcoming product, com¬ 
posed of a minimum of 20 multK 
million-dollar films, will be Y. 
Frank Freeman, Jacob H. Karp, 
D. A. Doran, Bernard Feins, Luigi 
Luraschi and Herb Steinberg. 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


PBrIETy 


PICTURES 


19 


Little Intimate Junkets To The Grape 

Universal’* ‘Wmelift’ Operating Under Military 
Logistics As Staffers Dedicate Their Stamina 


Napa, Cal., Sept. 30 

Universal is using a new pub¬ 
licity gimmick on its biggest-bud- 
get N production, the $3,500,000 
"This Earth Is Mine.” 

Henry King is shootipg on loca¬ 
tion in the Napa Valley—wine 
capital of the U.S.—for six weeks 
and studio has devised system of 
“individualized junkets” to get 
full coverage for the picture. 

Instead of bringing 40 to 50 
newsmen and magazine reps from 
New York and Los Angeles en 
masse, Universal is bringing them 
in by twos and threes all through 
six-week location period. 

This has resulted in a headache 
for the location publicity man, 
Fred Banker, and his assistant, 
Mike Baiimohl, not to mention the 
Frisco exploitation man, Mike Vo¬ 
gel, and Jack Diamond and Harry 
Niemeyer in Los Angeles and Phil 
Gerard in New York. 

But Universal staff, convinced 
that barrage of publicity is neces¬ 
sary from the time shooting started 
early this month until release next 
July, figures small, continuous 
junkets will pay off. 

Logistics of junkets involve: 

(1) Sending actor Alberto 
Morin, dressed as a sommelier, to 
five dozen writers in Los Angeles 
and New York to pour an iced 
glass of champagne and to de¬ 
liver junket invitation personally; 

(2) Follow-up phone calls to 
each writer to set a definite date; 

(3) Delivery of four bottles of 
still wine, with round-trip air tick¬ 
ets to Frisco attached; 

(4) Picking up writers in pub¬ 
licity limousine at Frisco Airport 
and chauffeuring them north to 
Casa Lu-Al Motel, 50 miles north 
of Frisco and a mile outside Napa; 

(5) Putting writers up at mo¬ 

tel—80% taken over by Univer¬ 
sal—and then taking them another 
25 miles into vineyards where 
Henry King is shooting; I 

(6) Arranging valley winery ; 
tour—premium wineries, Charles i 
Krug, Inglenook, Beaulieu, 
Schramsberg and Louis Martini 
are all working with studio; 

(7) Shipping writers back to 
Frisco and home bases after two 
or three-day stay. 

Whole thing is called "Opera¬ 
tion Winelift” and Banker says it 
isn’t unusual to put a pair of wri¬ 
ters on a 9 a.m. plane bound for 
New York and walk a few yards to 
pick up another pair of writers in 
on the 9:05 a.m. plane from Los 
Angeles. 

Each tour gets full-dress treat¬ 
ment—last weekend, for instance, 
U’s eastern publicity manager, 
Gerard, escorted Ed Miller of 
Seventeen, Florence Sommer of 
Redbook and Mark Nichols of Coro¬ 
net in from New York, 

U feeling is that this picture, 
scripted by Casey Robinson and 
coproduced by Robinson and 
Claude Heilman, marks a definite 
turning point in company policy. 
Idea is that only a dozen films a 
year, half of them big budget and 
other half somehow unusual, will 
be produced henceforth instead of 
three dozen programmers. 

But, says Banker, “we can’t af¬ 
ford to shoot a picture and then 


forget about it until it’s in re¬ 
lease ... we have to have a con¬ 
sistent, long-range campaign and 
that’s what we’re getting here.” 

Total publicity budget for these 
six weeks may run as high as $75,- 
000, and that’s just a starter— 
film is on a 12-week shooting 
schedule with last half to be done 
at studio. 

Among those who’ve already had 
individualized junkets are: 

Norman Siegal, Photoplay; Dave 
Zeitlin, Life; Stan Gordon, Look; 
Tom Wood, N.Y. Herald Tribune; 
Erskine Johnson, NEA; Betty 
Voigt, Newsweek; Dean Gauchey, 
legman for Harrison Carroll; Paine 
Knickerbocker, repping N. Y. 
Times; Louis Wolf, Chicago Trib¬ 
une. 

Booked, for current or future 
junkets are: 

Neil Rau, repping Louella Par¬ 
sons; Nelson Hughes, repping-Hed- 
da Hopper; Rick DuBrow, UPI; 
Larry Barbier and Don Ornitz, 
Globe Photos; Lize Wilson, Ameri¬ 
can Weekly; Pat Campbell, Motion 
Picture; Peer Oppenheimer, Fam¬ 
ily Weekly;. Lowell Redelings and 
Len Boyd, Hollywood Citizen- 
News; Harold Heffernan, NANA; 
Nat Dallinger, King Features; Si¬ 
mon Bourgin, Newsweek; Ruth 
Waterbury, Cosmopolitan; Herb 
Stein, Triangle Publications; Sara 
Salzer, Seventeen; A. M. Colegrove 
Scripps-Howard; Hal Boyle, AP. 

U has grabbed considerable 
space in Frisco and other North¬ 
ern California dailies, figures on 
bringing in as many of what it 
calls "key people” as possible in 
preparation for months-long cam¬ 
paign. Picture, which centers on 
a Napa Valley wine-making family 
and is based on Alice Tisdale Ho¬ 
bart’s novel. The Cup and the 
Sword,” also has fervent co-op¬ 
eration of California Wine Insti¬ 
tute and Wine Advisory Board. 


Phono Famino 

Continued from page 1 

ceived reports that Germany, In 
particular, is spurting ahead in de¬ 
veloping the stereo market. Eu¬ 
rope, he pointed out, is particularly 
ripe for the stereo system because 
the monaural hi-fi biz is compara¬ 
tively new there and it's likely that 
consumers interested in new equip¬ 
ment will skip over the monaural 
system directly to stereo rigs. 
Marek also said that the large 
rooms which are typical of Euro¬ 
pean homes are also ideally suit¬ 
able for stereo sound. 

Even in Japan, Marek stated, 
stereo is making strong inroads. 
One of the first segments of the 
overseas market to be influenced 
by stereo is the American Armed 
Forces. . Inquiries about stereo 
disks have been rising steadily on 
the U.S. posts and once machines 
are generally available, the sales 
upbeat can be expected. 

Marek will be in Japan for sev¬ 
eral weeks conferring with execs 
of Nipponese Victor, an indepen¬ 
dent affiliate of RCA Victor. He 
will study the sales of U.S. disks 
in the Far East and discuss 
methods of further stimulating biz 
in this area! 


WB Further 'Restores Albany 


Film Row There Believes Closing in March Created 
More Costs Than It Cut 


LOWER WESTCHESTER 

Hollywood Aound Executive 
•ffart fully furnish** homo *n 
Private Lake 10-minutes from 
Manhattan. $150,000. 
Exclusive With 

OLIVIA G. SEELER, Inc. 

ill Ashford Av*„ Ardsloy OWens 3-3400 


POSITION SOUGHT 

by dnemaphUe; single male will travel 
anywhar* In any capacity for ANY 
BRANCH *f the odtertalnment werld. 
Background: motion picture work¬ 
shops, fUm processing labs. 

Box V-9S-5I, Variety, 

154 West 44th Stroot, Now York 
or call LU 1-4731 


New York Theatre 


r-MlIt CUT MUSIC NALL—n 

RociaMar Coater • Cl 5-4400 

“CAT 0N A ROT TM ROOF” 

EUZASETR TAYLOR • PAUL MENMAN • IUMMS 

JACK CAKfON • JUDITH ANDERSON 

FROM M-C-M IN MCTROCOLOR 
end GAIA NEW STAGE SKCTACU 


Albany, Sept, 30. 
The going recently has been 
rugged in the distribution end of 
motion pictures, but sentiment still 
holds sway—as demonstrated by 
an attendance of 80 at a farewell 
dinner in the Sheraton-Ten Eyck 
Hotel last week for Ray Smith, re¬ 
cently retired after 28 years as 
branch manager for Warners. The 
turnout was one of the largest in 
recent years, for such an affair. 

Kallet Theatres,. of Oneida, had 
Sidney Kallet and Sam Le Balbo 
as its representatives; Schine Cir¬ 
cuit, of Gloversville, sent four men, 

Iacq Rriticll Filmunnuf the dele S ation bein g headed by 
LCSS DlinSU rWngOUlg Bernard Diamond, a speaker, and 


Shipman & King Profits 
Dip Sharply in Line With 


London, Sept. 23. 

A profit slash of $103,000 for the 
year is reported by Shipman & 
King Cinemas, which operates over 
40 picture theatres in the Home 
Counties. Profit recorded this year 
was $308,000 against over $411,000 
in the previous year. 

Brian Manning, company chair¬ 
man, told stockholders that the 
accounts reflected the general 
downward trend in admissions 
throughout the country. But he 
added that somewhat better finan- 
cal results during the five months 
since the close of the year gave 
some encouragement for the fu¬ 
ture. The board was confident, he 
said, that given complete freedom 
from restrictive taxation, the in¬ 
dustry could continue to play its 
important part in the field of pub¬ 
lic entertainment and meet the 
challenge of its competitors. 

One of the essentials for sur¬ 
vival of the cinema* Manning em¬ 
phasized, was an efficient British 
film production industry, and Brit¬ 
ish films of the quality -expected 
by the public could only be made 
successfully if a sound domestic 
market Was-made available. This 
could only be achieved by the 
abolition of admissions tax. 


Biz-Still-Alive 
Godspeed Theme 
Of WB s Smith 


including William Kraemer, Chris 
Pope and Dick Dickerson. 

Don Wilson, of the Border Drive- 
in at Chazy, was also on hand to 
voice his regard for Smith, who 
sold for Fox, Universal and RKO 
before joining WB. Even far-away 
Binghamton had two exhibitors 
present: Leonard Kaufman and 
Norman Pearlman. 

Ralph Ianuzzi, Warner Eastern 
division manager and Smith’s 
former boss, attended with Ernest 
Sands, New York branch chief. 
Harry Rogovin, Columbia district 
manager, from Boston, likewise 
showed. 

George Thornton, Saugerties ex¬ 
hibitor, served as toastmaster. 

Capping the gay-but-sad proceed¬ 
ings was an address by Smith in. 
which he not only praised Warner 
Bros., but also made a strong 
pitch for its new product. 

Ed Susse, MGM resident man¬ 
ager, served as chairman. Thorn¬ 
ton, John Gardner, of the Glens 
Drive-in, Glens Falls, Joe Miller, 
operator of Menands Drive-in and 
one-time Columbia branch man¬ 
ager, and Clayton Eastman, 20th 
Century-Fox local chief, were 
others on the committee. 


Par’s Four-Approach Test on ■ Houseboat’; 

Result: All-Angles-of-Appeal Fused 


Combine all the elements of a 
film production in the advertising 
campaign—that’s the best way. At 
least, this is the way Paramount 
found things with its four different 
approaches with “Houseboat,” 
Cary Grant-Sophia Loren costarrer. 

Company played the picture in 
four Michigan situations, each with 
different press insertions and radio 
copy. One played up the family 
angles as concerning Grant and 
his three children, second hit the 
Grant-Loren romanc?, third under¬ 
scored the comedy and the fourth 
was the combination of the first 
three. 

The combo idea, as tried at the 
State Theatre, Kalamazoo, won 
out. In the first three days (Friday- 
Sunday) the picture grossed $8,400. 


Par measured the returns in com¬ 
parison with Warners’ "Indiscreet” 
(Grant and Ingrid Bergman) which 
reportedly took in slightly over 
$6,000 in a full week. 

Par gauged "Boat” against "In¬ 
discreet” in the three other Michi¬ 
gan situations—in Jackson, Ann 
Arbor and Battle Creek—and 
"Boat” was ahead in all three. But 
the Kalamazoo outing proved best 
of all and the campaign in this 
city is the one which is to be used 
nationally. 

Par spotters noted that the Kal¬ 
amazoo run brought out more of 
the all-around family-type audi¬ 
ence, meaning kids with parents, 
etc. This was not so noticeable at 
the other locations. 

"Boat” will be opened in Phila-~J 
delphia and Washington in October. 


Albany, Sept. 30. 

There was. joy and satisfaction on 
Film Row here last week; Warner 
Bros. Distributing Corp. had fur¬ 
ther reversed its March 28 action 
in closing the Albany exchange, 
was hiring more people, as well as 
re-equipping the office. Bookings 
and billings were being returned 
from New York, and the local op¬ 
eration began to Approach the full- 
exchange level at which it had so 
long been conducted. 

Two changes that had been 
made^ however, stuck. A sales rep¬ 
resentative, Ed Segal, who recently 
Was transferred here from the 
Syracuse zone, to replace # Ray 
Smith (now retired), continued to 
be the lone Warner man on the road. 
And Clark Service renamed as in¬ 
specting and shipping agents. 

There were many assertions— 
none official—that the original 
move had been a serious mistake. 
Almost from the day in March that 
the WB branch office closed its 
doors, and even after they were re¬ 


opened in earlv June, with a three- 
person staff, billings had become 
somewhat fouled up in New York. 
Situation was taking money away 
from the Warner treasury. 

Mrs. Carrie Rodgers, manager’s 
secretary for many years, has re¬ 
turned to the fold—she had been 
vacationing in Florida. Mrs. Lillian 
Buschofsky, with 10 years’ service 
at Metro, most recently as assistant 
cashier, resigned to become cashier 
for WB. Mrs. Jennie Nash was 
hired as a biller. 

Remaining at posts they took 
when WB relighted the exchange 
last June’ were: James Evans, 
booker; Mrs. Nancy Di Sorrento, 
booking clerk (she had been‘with 
the company seven years). 

Evans, head shipper at Para¬ 
mount for more than 25 years be¬ 
fore his retirement, joined WB as 
a date-setter three years ago. He 
was pinkslipped in March; had just 
gone to work for Clark Service 
when an opening re-appeared at 
Warners. 





Two Cities Investing Co. 
announces the purchase of 


a novel by Charles Grayson 

published by Rinehart ts Company 

for production in Spain by 

Martin A. Gosch-Apollo Films International 

Praise from the book critics: 

“Tremendously exciting... an intriguing study of a battle 
of wills.” — rex lardner, New York Times 

“Colorful and dramatic... worthy to stand beside Belascu 
Ibanez.” — Walter trohan, Chicago Tribune 

“Hotblooded romance is synchronized with the allure of 
a savage spectacle.” — Virginia Kirkus Book Shop Service 

“A different and highly interesting story, authoritatively 
written; sharp emotions, shining danger and truth.” 

— REX SMITH 

The first great now international picture to come frem Apolia flhm' 




Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


UBklEff 


RADIO-TELEVISION 


21 


PUBLIC VOTES ‘NO’ ON QUIZZES 


They Said It Couldn’t Be Done 

Probably the most unique sale in broadcasting this season— 
either in. radio or television—is the six-installment CBS Radio 
documentary series “The Hidden Revolution,” which premieres 
on Oct. 22 with Ed Murrow narrating the series, being, underwrit¬ 
ten by Nationwide Insurance Co. Outfit is splurging to the tune 
of $200,000 for the series of documentaries, which will teeqff in 
full hour form, with the remaining to be done as half-hour en¬ 
tries. 

It’s been more years than any network cares to remember since 
a documentary series has been brought in Under commercial 
auspices, and unique aspect of “Hidden Revolution,” out of Irv¬ 
ing Gitlin’s Public Affairs Division, is that the project, came into 
being because Nationwide Insurance asked CBS to develop a ser¬ 
ies of uninhibited mood and significant depth. 

Country’s foremost atomic scientists, sociologists, educational 
leaders and government heads will participate in the series. They 
include Admiral Rickover, General Twining, Advance Research 
Projects Director Roy Johnson, Secretary of Interior Fred A. Sea¬ 
ton, John Kenneth Gailbraith and others. 

After the Oct. 22 preem, the series will be of half-hour duration 
with the following theme breakdown: 

Nov. 19: “Freedom’s Last Stand,” dealing with challenges to de¬ 
mocracy and liberty in nuclear age; Dec. 17: “The 20-Hour Week.”; 
Jan. 21: “My Friend, My Enemy,” examination of the. changes in 
human relations brought about by “The Hidden Revolution”; Feb. 
18: “The Empty Schoolhouse,” study of new needs and problems 
of education, and March 18: “The Day Called X,” probing of war 
or peace. 

“Hidden Revolution” will attempt to reflect the public relations 
approach of the sponsor, a comparatively young insurance com¬ 
pany but fourth largest in one field, namely automobiles. With 
some 3,000,000 policy holders regularly contacted by field agents, 
Nationwide expects to start series with a substantial *“pre-sold” au¬ 
dience for the series. 

Gitlin will handle overall supervision of “The Hidden Revolu¬ 
tion.” James Fleming will be executive producer in association 
with Arthur Rabin and Richard Siemanowski. 


Best Laid Plans of CBS Go Awry 
In Projecting Shows Year Ahead 


Morris Plan (Wm., That Is) Into 
’58-’59 TV Season With Whopping 
27-Show Scorecard for New Mark 


Approximately one year ago, at 
the start of the ’57-’58 season, 
CBS-TV stuck out its chest, its 
money and possibly, its neck by 
proudly proclaiming that , the net¬ 
work had no less than a dozen pro¬ 
gramming projects on tap for the 
*58-’59 season. Tallying time has 
come around and the new motto at 
the web might well be “don’t plan 
too far ahead, for only one of the 
programs the network counted bn 
for this fall has panned out 

Of the brand new programs to 
be presented this fall only “Pur¬ 
suit,” a live one-hour detective 
series to be presented Wednesday 
at 8, will be aired. None of the 
other programs CBS counted on 
for this season made the grade for 
one reason or another, most of the 
skeins failing to attract sponsor 
attention. 

The programs which didn’t ma¬ 
terialize are “The World of White,” 
Sydney Kingsley’s series, the pilot 
having been shot last fall and 13 
scripts completed; Nat Hiken’s 
“The Magnificent Montague,” pilot 
shown around the ad agencies this 
fall; Howard Erskine’s “Ren¬ 
dezvous” anthology, of which the 
web gave the go-ahead sign for 13 
films; a series titled “Front Office,” 
in which Ralph Bellamy was 
slated to play the lead role and two 
additional holdover pilots, “Nancy 
Drew,” and what was then titled 
“21st Precinct.” 

Two of the CBS programs made 
(Continued on page 44) 


Winston Salem’s 
‘NW Passage’ Buy 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Winston Salem ciggies has 
bought alternate sponsorship on 
10 “Northwest Passage” vidfilms, 
thus giving Metro TV vldseries on 
NBC-TV full sponsorship. RCA and 
Winston Salem will split the tab on 
the series henceforth. 

Meanwhile, studio tv production 
chief Richard Malbaum has just 
finished supervision of connectives 
for a trio of the vid segs to be re¬ 
lease abroad as a theatrical film. 
Metro spent $260,COO more.on the 
series than it receives from NBC- 
TV, because it was lensed in color. 
However, studio expects to recoup 
that'coin and more via the release 
of the telescoped vidpix In the 
foreign market. 


BBC-TV OperaVersion 
Of Tale of 2 Cities’ 

London, Sept, 30. 

A two-hour production of an op¬ 
eratic version of Charles Dickens’ 
“A Tale Of Two Cities” will be 
aired by BBC-TV on Thursday (2) 
evening. 

The opera, with libretto by 
Cedric Cliffe and music by Ar¬ 
thur Benjamin, had its first stage 
production by the New Opera Co. 
last year. It has 23 featured parts 
plus a large chorus and extras. 
Music will be played by the Roy¬ 
al Philharmonic Orchestra and the 
program will be produced by Ru¬ 
dolph Cartier. 


Yoder’s Raiders’ 
Still Raise Havoc 
With Live Shows 

Chicago, Sept. 30. 
Lloyd Yoder and his Philadel¬ 
phia raiders have struck again at 
WMAQ-WNBQ. This time they 
felled a pair of live cross-the-board 
entries in the noon hour, “Bingo” 
and the kidshow “Commander 5,” 
both of which had been installed 
last spring by the Jules Herbu- 
veaux regime. Elected to replace 
the extirpated shows are a pair of 
half hour vidpix, “It’s a Great 
Life” and an anthology series. 

This is the second major onset 
of the former Philly NBC veep and 
his boys since they iparched in on 
the Chi o&os less than a month 
ago. In their programming pogrom 
there have been some comparative¬ 
ly minor purges too, such as the 
lopping off of veteran newscaster 
Jack Angell and the switching of 
several radio pubaffairs opuses 
from weekends to weeknights to 
make added room for the saleable 
“Chicago Monitor.” 

Latest programming assault, of 
the two video daytimers, was made 
boldly in the face of a generally 
bad local press resulting from the 
Yoder clan’s rub out of the five- 
minute nightly contributions of 
Dorsey Connors;.Norm Barry and' 
Clifton Utley.. Unhappy sentiment 
, (Continued on page 44) 



By GEORGE ROSEN 

The first real_ measurement of 
the network quizzes since the ini¬ 
tial outbreak of the scandal is now 
available, based on rating returns 
of the new season. At the time the 
scandal broke, it’s recalled, the 
quiz packagers (and at least one 
network) went on record as saying 
that the public would be the judge. 
The returns are now coming in— 
and the public has voted an em¬ 
phatic “no.” 

Exhibit A: NBC-TV’s “Twenty- 
One,” which had slipped from 6th 
to 35th place in the early Septem¬ 
ber Nielsens, hit its lowest score 
to date in its switchover last week 
to Thursday night. Against reruns 
of the ABC’s “Real McCoys” and 
the CBS summer replacement 
“Verdict Is Yours” entry, its 11.2 
Trendex was swamped by “Mc¬ 
Coy’s” 20.0 and just managed to 
match the CBS summer filler. 

Exhibit B: Without even any net¬ 
work competition in its Saturday 
night 10:3d to 11 slot, NBC-TV’s 
“Brains and Brawn” could only 
muster an 8.0 Trendex first time 
out and a 9.0 on the second week. 
On the other hand, the rival 
WCBS-TV in the New York market, 
With a half-hour syndicated vid¬ 
pix entry, ran off with an 18.7 
rating. 

Exhibit C: “Price Is Right” on 
NBC, which had been flirting with 
the Top 10 contenders all summer, 
dropped to 16th position in the 
new September Nielsens, It how 
has the distinction of being the 
highest Nielsen-rated quizzer on tv, 
but interesting to note is that not 
a single quiz program shows up 
among the Top 15 Nielsen entries. 
(First time that’s happened since 
“$64,000 Question” made it big.) 

Exhibit D: “$64,000 Question” 
returned to CBS-TV a couple Sun¬ 
days back, moving into the Sunday 
night at 10 period formerly occu¬ 
pied by the now-axed “$64,000 
Challenge.” First time out it 
took a Trendex beating from a 
film anthology rerun series (“De¬ 
cision”) on NBC-TV, latter snaring 
a 23.5 as opposed to the quizzer’s 
17.4 And this despite the fact 
that “$64,000 Question” enjoyed 
an enviable lead-in with the Alfred 
Hitchcock series. (Return of Lor¬ 
etta Young to the 10 o’clock berth, 
always a fave with NBC audiences, 
is expected to widen the gap fur¬ 
ther.) 

Exhibit E: NBC’s “Tic Tac 
Dough,” after a longtime boast of 
40.0 share of audience in its 7:30 
evening berth, dwindled to a 28.0 
share. 

There’s no denying that the scan¬ 
dal has soured the. audiences on 
money shows, h^nce the* Trendex- 
accented repudiation. (That’s why 
CBS has reportedly been having 
some secret huddles on the advis¬ 
ability of doing away with all 
quizzers.) if NBC is having more 
than its share of discomfiture. It’s 
because so much sponsor coin (in 
the aggregate representing some 
$18,000,000 in total annual billings) 
is riding with money shows on that 
network. Out of the Barry & En¬ 
right-created stable alone, in addi¬ 
tion to “Twenty-One,” there’s “Tic 
Tac Dough,” both as daytime and 
nighttime fare, and “Concentra¬ 
tion.” There’s a nearly $10,000,000 
sponsor commitment on the day¬ 
time “Tic Tac” and “Concentra¬ 
tion” alone, and triggering the dis¬ 
tress is the fact that such national 
clients as General Foods and Proc-. 
ter & Gamble (who run fast from 
anything even remotely suggesting 
skulduggery) are involved. 

ZSA ZSA’S 15G FOR 
GILLETTE BLURBS 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Gillette has added Zsa Zsa 
Gabor to Its pitching battery for 
vidblurbs during upcoming World 
! Series telecasts over NBC-TV. She 
joins Bob Hope, John Wayne and 
Rock Hudson, previously signed 
■for blurb-beaming. 

Actress reportedly will be paid 
i In excess of $15,000 for season. 


Groucho’* ‘Oucho* 

If last week’s initial Tren¬ 
dex returns on the new season 
are indicative of a viewing 
patteren, it looks like Groucho 
Marx’s “YOu Bet Your Life” 
will have its hands full this 
season as result of the show’s 
shift to the Thursday 10 p.m. 
slot. 

CBS-TV’s “The Plot to Kill 
Stalin” (Playhouse 90) out¬ 
pointed Groucho 18.6 to 18.1 
for the 10 to 10:30 period, 
while in the previous (9:30) 
half-hour, “Playhouse regis¬ 
tered a fat 22:2 as opposed to 
“Buckskin’s” 16.0. Interesting 
aspect here is that “Buckskin,” 
prior to the last week’s Play¬ 
house 90” starter, had been 
grabbing off Top 10 tallies. 

Grey Agcy. Rides 
Out a 
‘Pursuit’ TV Buy 

Grey agency found itself on the 
horns of a dilemma last week in 
resolving what to do with its Men¬ 
nen ty biz (totalling some $3,000,- 
000 in annual billings). Coin was 
up for grabs when the client de¬ 
cided to pull out of the ABC-TV 
fights. 

Grey Is the agency on the NBC 
account, which seemed to give: that 
network a running start in pitching 
for the biz. NBC was particualrly 
anxious to embrace Mennen spon¬ 
sorship on either (or both) of two 
hourlong entries, the Friday night 
“Ellery Queen” and the Saturday 
night “Cimarron City.” It was an 
attractive offer, involving a sizable 
NBC contribution on program costs. 

But CBS-TV was in there pitch¬ 
ing, too, with its new 60-minute 
“Pursuit” series, which comprises 
many of the producer-director 
components of the former "Cli¬ 
max” series and which is budgeted 
at $60,000 per. 

Herb Straus, exec veepee of 
Grey, A1 Hollander, tv-radio chief¬ 
tain of the agency, and Len Col¬ 
son, ad director of Mennen, wres¬ 
tled with the problem and, despite 
the NBC-Grey allegiance, threw in 
their lot with the CBS entry, pact- 
ing for * alternate-week full hour. 
Program strength, (at least on 
paper) of “Pursuit” was said to be 
a factor in the decision. 

Unhappy With Billing, 

Jane Powell Scrams 
Eddie Fisher’s Teeoff 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 
Jane Powell, who was to have 
guested on Eddie Fisher’s seasonal 
opener on NBC-TV tonight (Tues.) 
bowed off the show a few days be¬ 
fore it went on as the result of a 
billing clash with Jerry Lewis. 
NBC-TV publicity department had 
stated her departure was due to 
“conflicting commitments.” J 

But Miss Powell explained 
when she was originally signed her 
contractual billing specified hers 
would read “special guest star.” 
Later, however, Lewis was signed 
to guest on the show and he in¬ 
sisted on the billing, “special 
added attraction.” 

Singer objected to this on 
grounds it would make her billing 
meaningless, and offered to share 
equal billing with Lewis. ’ Come¬ 
dian resisted, however, and held 
out for his “special” billing, so 
Miss Powell ankled the show on 
Thursday. I 


By JACK HELLMAN 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Topping the previous high mark 
in its 60-year history of talent 
management and tv package sales, 
the William Morris agency will 
have more shows riding the net¬ 
works under its sales aegis this 
season th^n any competing outfit. 
The margain of superiority is so 
marked that the second best sales 
record is far distant numerically. 

Agency’s sales record for the 
season is 12 new shows. Together 
with the holdovers from last sea¬ 
son, the company will be repre¬ 
sented by 27 shows, believed to be 
unparalleled in tv history. For the 
record, here are the new programs 
that will carry the Morris sales 
stamp: 

Ann Sothern Show, “SteVt 
Canyon,” “The Rifleman,” “Wanted- 
Dead or Alive,” “Further Adven¬ 
tures of Ellery Queen,” “Brains 
and Brawn,” “Love and Marriage,” 
“The Invisible Man,” Milton Berle 
Show, Peter Lind Hayes and Mary 
Healey, Firestone Hour, “Mother’s 
Day.” In this foregoing list there 
may be instances of half or no 
sales but Morris has the order 
from the network. In syndication 
are the . Morris-sold “Charlie 
Chan,” “Silent Service” and “Trad¬ 
er Horn.” 

To fill out the list of 27 shows 
riding out the season in the WM 
silks must be added those continu¬ 
ing from last or previous seasons, 
many of them re-sales. Said a Mor- 
risman, “many shows are not just 
carryovers. The sponsor or his 
agency must be sold all over 
again.” The renewals comprise 
Danny Thomas, “Wyatt Earp,” 
“The Real McCoys,” Loretta Young; 
Groucho Marx, “Trackdowh,” “De¬ 
cember Bride,” Gale Storm, “Tht 
(Continued on page 40) 



Trendex Charts 

Looks like a battle royal for 
audience domination between the 
two “Perrys” (Mason and Como) on 
the basis of last Saturday’s (27) 
Trendex returns, with only one- 
tenth of a point separating the two 
shows in their competing 8 to 8:30 
segment. “Perry Mason” hit a 23.4 
as opposed to Como’s 23.5. 

In its earlier (7:30 to 8) period, 
“Perry Mason” had itself a Tren¬ 
dex ball, snaring a 21.0 as com¬ 
pared with Dick" Clark’s “Ameri¬ 
can Bandstand” on ABC (13.3) and 
NBC’s “People Are Funny” (11.0). 

On Friday, Phil Silvers edged 
out “M Squad,” 18.2 to 17.6. On 
Sunday it was Steve Allen’s turn 
to rule the Trendex roost, Allen 
getting an average of 22.0 for the 
full hour as against Sulivan’s 18.2. 
On the other hand, “Maverick” 
trounced them both at 8 to 8:30 
with a 25.8. 

Await Texaco Decision 
On ‘Friars Man of Hour’ 

Texaco officials appear to be- 
just as enthusiastic as CBS execs 
over the audition show cut last 
week of CBS-TV’s “Friars Club 
Man of the'Hour” and a decision 
will be forthcoming this week as 
to whether the company will pick 
up the tab for the series. 

Originally it was designed as a 
weekly half-hour entry, but based 
on the 53 minutes of show 
wrapped up for the audition, it’* 
been changed to a full hour one- 
a-month entry. It’s reported board 
chairman Bill Paley and other top 
CBS execs literally flipped when 
they saw the test runoff. Show Is 
the creation of Lester Gottlieb 
with Nat Hiken producing and 
writing. 






22 




P'StelETf 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 



Washington, Sept. 30. 

Television probes, the House 
Harris Investigating Subcommittee 
has learned the hard way, are po¬ 
litical dynamite. So the Congress¬ 
men have decided to put away the 
matches until after election day, 


Nov. 4. 

The conclusion was obvious 
after two days of talking about 
rumors and important political 
names connected with the Pitts¬ 
burgh channel 4 tv case, which is 
—and has been for some time— 
before a federal grand jury here. 

The hearings slipped ouf of hand 
politically for the Democrats. And 
the subcommittee chairman. Hep. 
Oren Harris CD- Ark.) r found him¬ 
self in the position of announcing 
publicly that one of his investiga¬ 
tors had. goofed when he cast re¬ 
flections on the Democratic candi¬ 
date for governor in Pennsylvania 
and the chairman of the committee 
‘sot up to elect Democrats to the 
U.S. Senate. 

Harris, who had previously 
scheduled the current set of hear¬ 
ings to run through Oct. 3, 
promptly called them off Sept. 26, 
announcing there would be no fur¬ 
ther public probe of tv cases until 
November. The votes in the Con¬ 
gressional election will have been 
cast and counted by then. 

* Republicans on the subcommit¬ 
tee : mentioned no objection, be¬ 
cause in the name dropping which 
has been going on, no one knows 
who might be next 

But it was too seductive an op¬ 
portunity for the GOP national 
chairman, Meade Alcorn, to pass. 
He dictated a statement saying 
Harris’ abrupt termination of hear¬ 
ings on the Pittsburgh channel 4 
case was an “attempt to slam the 
door on this political skeleton.” 
Harris acted, Alcorn said, “under 
pressure from the Democratic high 
command.” But Alcorn did not 
mention a Republican angle in the 
same hearings. 

A central figure in the Pittsurgh 
channel 4 case, at least as- far as 
the subcommittee’s study is con¬ 
cerned, is George ' C. McCon- 
naughey, former Federal Commu¬ 
nications Commission chairman 
and a Republican, now practicing 
law in Ohio.. The subcommittee in¬ 
vestigator, Oliver Eastland, report¬ 
ed to the subcommittee during the 
hearings that he had. collected un¬ 
founded rumors that: (1) McCon- 
naughey solicited a bride and (2) 
he accepted a bribe. Both were in 
connection with Pittsburgh chan¬ 
nel 4, an outlet originally .sought 
by five companies and which even¬ 
tually went to two of them in a 
(Continued on page 44) 


Plymouth Shooting 
The Works (AM & TV) 
On Welk Wed. Entry 

After two weeks of feeling out 
radio, first by means of a five- 
station hookup and then a seven- 
station tie, Plymouth has decided 
to buy the full ABC Radio line¬ 
up for its Wednesday Lawrence 
Welk show. .Tonight (Wed.) the 
7:30-8:30 show will both be seen 
and heard in 75 markets, although 
the radio buy includes many more 
than just tv-and-radio markets. 

Plymouth has tried out Welts 
music as a “stereophonic sound” 
In N.Y., Detroit, Chicago, Frisco, 
LA.., and Washington and Phila¬ 
delphia were added later. The 
stereophonic angle enabled view¬ 
er-listeners to get the band plunk- 
ings in fuller sound through the 
simultaneous use of tv’s FM and 
radio’s AM receivers. 

Enlarged radio deal was made 
by Jack W. Minor, assistant gen¬ 
eral manager of Plymouth. 

On the heels of the Plymouth 
program buy, ABC Radio inked 
three sponsors to a Saturday 
morning show for moppets. In a 
deal closed Friday (27), Cadence 
Records, Little Craft Inc. and 
TJ.S. Pharmacal bought “The 
Story Princess” readings by 
Alene Dalton; and started the 
program the next day, Saturday, 
in the 10-10:30 am, period. Deal, 
set for 12 more weeks, m?.rks the 
first sponsored program the web 
has had Saturday mornings for 
over two years. 


All-TV Legit Show 

With so many tv perform¬ 
ers in the George Abbott legit 
production of “Drink to Me 
Only” opening tonight (Wed.) 
at the Adelphi theatre, one 
wonders who’s minding the 
store down video lane. 

Tom Poston, a mainstay of 
Steve Allen’s show, has the 
lead in the Abbott production. 
Others are Cameron Prud’- 
homme, who did six years as 
radio’s “David Hamm;” Paul 
Hartman, familiar figure on 
various networks; Royal Beal, 
a recurring figure on the Phil 
Silvers show; John McGiver, 
ex-"Rraft Theatre;” Georgann 
Johnson, who played Marge 
Weskit on “Mr. Peepers;” 
Jack Guilford, whose rubber 
face has been seen on many 
tv shows, and Bert Wood, pro¬ 
duction stage manager. Who 
is also a frequent broadcaster. 


Mack, Whiteside 



Members of FCC 


Washington, Sept. 30. ‘ 

The indictment of Richard A 
Mack, former Federal Communica¬ 
tions - Commission Commissioner, 
and his Florida pal, Thurman A. 
Whiteside, shook the FCC top to 
bottom. 

It is obvious that FCC has had 
a morale problem since the Harris 
Investigating Subcommittee start¬ 
ed probing tv cases. For the con¬ 
scientious public servant in a high 
or low job with a quasi-judicial 
agency, negative publicity creating 
an adverse, questioning public at¬ 
titude which casts reflections 
throughout the Commission is 
tough to stomach. 

The impact, of the three-count 
federal indictments of an ex-Com- 
missioner and his friend, who was 
interested in the way a FCC deci¬ 
sion went, was the severest of all 
to date. 

The indictments of Mack and 
Whiteside charged, bribery' and 
conspiracy to influence, obstruct 
and impede the administration of 
law in connection with the Miami 
tv channel 10 case. The indictment 
charged that Whiteside corruptly 
influenced Mack to vote for the 
grant of the channel to a National 
Air Lines subsidiary. Public Serv¬ 
ice Television, Inc. 

From Florida, where he is how 
| living in his father’s hotel, saying 
he has been unable to earn any 
money since his resignation from 
FCC last March 3 in the wake of 
sensational hearings before the 
Harris Subcommittee, Mack de¬ 
clared bis innocence of the charges. 
And he pointedly asked why' he 
was the victim of "crucifixion” 
when other Commissioners who 
voted for Public Service have not 
received similar interrogation; Out¬ 
siders wondered if he plans to talk 
about other Commissioners when 
the case goes to trial. 

Warrants are not being Issued, 
and Mack and Whiteside are ex¬ 
pected to appear here voluntarily 
for arraignment, probably Friday. 

Maximum penalty for the charges 
involved is 10 years in prison’and 
a 115,000 fine. 


Robert Tamplin Tapped 
For ‘Hit Parade’ Entry 

Robert . Tamplin has been 
named associate producer of r the 
new “Hit Parade” show which ; 
kicks off on CBS-TV Friday, Oct 
10 . 

Other backstage personnel being 
lined,/up by Perry Lafferty, pro-; 
ducen, include Clay Warnick for 
choral director and Pete Gennarp 
as choreographer. . 

Tamplin was with Ed Sullivan 
for more than three years as as¬ 
sistant to the producer. Warnick 
V7cs with the < Caesar show 'and 
[/' 'y r t^v w?ule Gemjaro worked 
[■ ‘.roadway! production .of 

i ‘'East Side Story.” ' 


Adman Bob Foreman’s ‘Hot 
Half Hour’ Reads Iike lt’s 
Hot Out of the Headlines 

By JO RANSON 

The postgraduate curricula of 
network quiz show behavior, Mad¬ 
ison: Avenue’s fancy two-timing 
advertising agency patterns, the 
crafty doctrines of certain tv spon¬ 
sors,. the filmy negligee necro¬ 
mancy of seductive spielers, the 
cunning costper-thousand present 
tationz—aH ■ this and considerably 
more are pitched in the glittering 
patois of the super-sophisticated 
gray flannel-suited 15%ers in 
Robert L. Foreman’s novel, “The 
Hot Half Hour” (Criterion; $3.95). 

Obviously, the disclaimer* in 
front -of this jazzy saga of video 
giveaways is as phoney as ah an¬ 
nouncer’s sincerity. When Fore-j 
man, head of all the creative serv¬ 
ices at BBDO, sat down to write 
this first novel of his,-he couldn’t 
i possibly invent such conniving 
characters as Merton Karamaz and 
| Myron Essenger, partners in the 
House of Karess, leaders in wom- 
“ en’s fashion, and spenders of some 
! $10,000,000 yearly in various ad¬ 
vertising media. - Nobody, but no¬ 
body, could create such fictitious 
| characters and incidents and -when 
[Foreman doth insist that any re¬ 
semblances are merely coinciden¬ 
tal, he’s most likely copping the 
fifth. - - 

! Messrs. Karamaz and Essenger 
are as real as a station break but 
louder and certainly more villain- 
|ous in their day-to-day encounters 
with account executives, package 
producers and network chieftains. 
There were and are such thimble- 
(Continued on page 43) 


CBSO&OInLA. 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 

KNXT general manager Clark 
George made sweeping staff re¬ 
alignments at the CBS-TV o&o 
here last week, affecting program¬ 
ming, production, administration 
and sales. Major appointments 
wereThose of Bill Alcine to man¬ 
ager of film programming, with 
responsibility over all feature and 
syndicated film shows, and exec 
producer Don COok to responsibil¬ 
ity over live programming. Both 
report to program manager Don 
Hine. 

' Algeria Hacked, administrative 
supervisor of the station, was 
upped to business manager, suc¬ 
ceeding • Larry Lazarus, who be¬ 
came director of systems and pro¬ 
cedures. Floren Thompson be¬ 
comes assistant business manager 
and Hal Uplinger. replaces him as 
production coordinator. TJplinger 
was assistant sports director. 

Ford’s 500G to Fox Pop 
400 Typical Americans/ 
Wedi of Detroit Hoopla 

Ford Motor' Co. Is spending «p-. 
proximately $500,000 to bring 400- 
typical .American citizens from all 
parish of the country including 
Alaska to Detroit on Oct. 8 and 9 
to make their, comments first hand 
on what’-s. wrong with motor car 
design .and at .the same^ime en¬ 
tertain -them, with a special Ten¬ 
nessee Ernie Ford NBC-TV show 
originating from the Henry, and 
Edsel Ford auditorium. The Ford 
show, ordinarily telecast from Hoi-! 
lywood, will originate from Detroit! 
on this occasion and will be aired : 
Oct. 9. 

The George Gallup organization 
cbosethe 400 citizens who’ll partic¬ 
ipate ip. what Js known as the first 
Ford Consumer.... Conference and 
will attempt to disprove the charge 
that Detroit does not consider the 
needs of American motorists when 
It comes to motorcar design. In 
addition.to viewing the. new Ford 
models, laymen^partidpating in the 
vospop powwow/will be given the 
use of new Ford-cars'for 30 days 
for test purj>ose£ ‘ 


TV Network Premieres * 

(Oct. 1* Oct. 12) 

Wednesday, Oct. 1 

Wagon Train, (film). Western, NBC, 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Ford via 
J. Walter Thompson~and Nabisco via McCann-Erickson. 

Onto & Harriet, (film). Situation Comedy, ABC, 8:30 to 9. p.m, 
Eastman Kodak and Quaker, both via J. Walter Thompson. 

Armstrong Circle Theatre, Drama, CBS, 10 to 11 pjn. Arm¬ 
strong via BBDO. 

Thursday, Oct. 2 

Leave It to Beaver, (film). Situation Comedy, ABC, 7:30 to 8 
p.m. Miles via Geoffrey Wade and Ralston via Gardner. 

I Love Lucy, (film), (Reruns), Situation Comedy, CBS, 7:30 to 8 
p.m. Pillsbury via Campbell-Mithun and Clairol 'via Foote, Cone 
8c Belding. 

December Bride, (film), Situation Comedy, CBS, 8 to 8:30 p.m. 
General Foods via Benton 8c Bowles. 

Reah McCoys, (film), Situation Comedy, ABC, 8:30 to 9 p.m. 
Sylvania via J. Walter Thompson. 

Yancy Derringer, (film), Adventure, CBS, 8:30-to 9 p.m. S. C. 
Johnson via-Needham, Louis & Brorby. 

Pat Boone Show, Music, ABC, 9 to 9:30 p.m. Chevrolet via 
Campbell-Ewald. 

Zane Grey. Theatre, (film), .Western, CBS, *9 to 9:30 p.m. Gen¬ 
eral Foods via Benton 8c Bowles and S. C. Johnson via Foote, Cone 
& Belding. J. . / 

Behind Closed Doors, (filmVAdventure, NBC, 9 to 9;30 pm. 
Whitehall via Ted Bates and-.Xlggett 8c Myers via Dancer-Fitz- 
gerald-Sample. , 

Rough Riders, (film). Western, ABC, 9:30 to. 10 p.m.. P. Loril- 
larjJ via. Lennen A NewelL 

Ernie Ford Show, (color). Music-comedy/NRC, 9:30 to 10 pm. 
Ford Via J. Walter Thompson. 

Friday, Oct. 3 

Walt Disney' Presents, (film). Adventure-variety, ABC, 8 to 
9 p.m. Kellogg via Leo Burnett, Reynolds Metals via Buchannan 
and Hills Bros, via N. W. Ayer. 

Buckskin, Western, NBC; 7:30 to 8 p.m, Pillsbury Mills via Lee 
Burnett 

Jackie Gleason Show, Comedy-variety, CBS, 8:30 to 9 p.m. 
Lever via J./Walter Thompson and Pharmaceuticals via Parkson. 

SchlHz-Lux. Playhouse, (film). Drama, CBS, 9:30 to 10 p.nv Lever 
and Schlitz both via J. Walter Thompson. 

Sunday, Oct. & 

All-Star Bowling, (film). Sports, ABC, 4:30 to 5 p.m. American 
Machine 8c Foundry via Cunningham 8c Walsh . 

Lawman, (film). Western, ABC, 8:30 to 9 p.m. R. J. Reynolds via 
William Esty and General Mills via Dancer-Fitzgerald-Sample. 

Dinah Shore Chevy Show, (Color), .Music-variety, NBC, 9 to 10 
p.m. Chevrolet via Campbell-Ewald. 

Colt .45, Western, ABC, 9 to 9:30. p.m. Sustaining. 

Encounter, Drama, ABC, 9:30 to 10:30. pm. Sustaining. 

Alfred Hitchcock Presents, (film). Drama, CBS, 9:30 to 10 p.m. 
Bristol-Myers via Young 8c Rublcam. 

Loretta Young Show, (film). Drama, NBC, 10 to 10:30 p.m. 
Procter 8c Gamble via Benton 8c Bowies. 

Monday, Oct 6 

Danny Thomas Show, (film). Situation comedy, CBS, 9 to 9:30 
pm. General Foods via Benton 8c Bowles. 

Anybody Can Play, Audience participation, ABC, 9:30 to 10 
pm. R. J. Reynolds via William Esty.- 

Ann Sothern Show, (film). Situation Comedy, CBS, 9:30 to 10 
p.m. 

Westinghouse'DesHu Playhouse, (film), CBS, 10 to 11 p.m. West- 
inghouse via. McCann-Erickson. 

Wednesday, Oct 8 

High Adventure with Lowell Thomas, (Color film), Documentary, 
CBS, 8 to 9 p.m. Delco-Remy via D. P. Brother. 

Milton Berle Show,- (Golor), Comedy, NBC, 9 to 9:30 p.m. Kraft 
via J. Walter Thompson. 

Bat Masterson, (film). Western, NBC, 9:30 to 10 pm. Kraft and' 
Sealtest via Thompson 

Thursday, Oct 9 

Zorro, (film). Western, ABC, 8 to 8:30 p.m. AC Spark Hug via 
D. P. Brother and Seven-Up via Thompson. 

Friday, Oct 19 

Your Hit Parade, Music, CBS, 7:30 to 8 p.m. American Tobacco 
via BBDO. 

. Man With a Camera, (film). Adventure, ABC, 9 to 9:30 pm. Gen¬ 
eral. Electric via Grey. 

77 Sunset Strip, (film). Adventure, ABC, 9:30 to 11 p.m. (9:30 to 
Uh30 after premiere). American Chicle, Carter and Whitehall, all 
via Bates, and Harold F. Ritchie via Kenyon 8c Eckhardt 

Saturday, Oet 11 

All-Star Golf, Sports, ABC, 5 to 8 pm. Miller Brewing via 
Mathlsson. Reynolds Metal via Buchannan. 

Sunday, Oet It 

Roller Derby, Shorts, ABC, 3:30 to 4:30‘p.m. Sustaining. 

. Small World, News-interview, CBS, 6 to 6:30 pm. Renault via 
D’Arcy and Olin Mathleson via Needham, Louis 8c Brorby. 

Paid Winchell Show, Comedy, ABC, 5 to 5:30pm.~Hartx Moun¬ 
tain Products via George Hartman and General Mills via Dancer- 
Fitzgerald-Sample. 

SPECIALS 

Bing Crosby Show, Music-variety, ABC, 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. 
Wednesday, Oct 1. Oldsmobile via D. P. Brother. 

Shirley Temple's Story Book, (Color), Fairy Tale, NBC, 8 to 9 
p.m. Sunday, Oct 5. National Dairy, Hills Bros, and John H. Breck, 
all via N. W. Ayer. 

Swiss Family Robinson, (Color), Adventure, NBC, 8:30 to 7:30 
p.m. Sunday,'vOct. 12. Rexall via BBDO. 


Mary KellyExits NBC, 
Joins Win. McCaffrey 

Mary A. Kelly, after a nine-year 
stay at NBC and longtime associate, 
producer of “Today,” is stepping 
nut to join the Williaqi McCaffrey 
personal management outfit 

-Before joining “Today” Miss 
Kelly was with NBC’s “Broadway 
Open House” „ and ’.'Colgate 
Comedy Hour.” . 

Meanwhile, Robert. Bendick was 
named producer/of the ‘Today” 
show..; He atari# pert Monday .(8); 
when' the format. of the program 
changes considerably. Bendick 
was producer. of '“Today”'from 
Aug., 1954 to Sept., 1955 when he 
became a “Wide, WldeWbrid’’ pro* 
duceri .More j^eritly hbproduced 
tv- prograins, for Merian C. Cooper 
Enterprises. 


R0BL SPARKS EXITS 
CBS/TV ON COAST 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 

Robert Sparks, who. joined CBS- 
TV in 1955 as exec producer of net¬ 
work film s, Hollywood, resigned 
over the weeeknd, to form a new 
association which he will disclose 
in the sear Tuture. 

’ Sparks,-who will exit CBS-TV ip 
late, December, jias during Ida ten- 
uTO v ( wltii - the net been exec pro¬ 
ducer of “Gunsmoie,”—‘‘Have Gum 
—Vrpi Travel,” “Lineup,^ “Perry 
Mason,” “December Bride,”- “Mr. 
Adams and Eve,” “The Eve Arden 
Show/’,.‘favorite Husband/* “You 
^rer.Th'aro,” .and tS* -18- vidfilmed 
•segs of ‘gUwhide,”.new; one-hour 
oater skedded for next season. 


Wednesday, October l t 195S 


f^BHETr 


RADIO-TELEVISION 


23 


THE BIG TV PREVIEW RHUBARB 

- 1:---■ : : f 4— : : — " • - ' ‘ 


Nielsens Top 10: Five Westerns 

The new Nielsens (for September) knock the quizzes out of the 
Top 10 box completely/ but indicate the westerns are still in favor. 
In fact, five of the 10 are shoot-’em-ups. CBS was way out in front 
with eight, with NBC and ABC getting one apiece. (No quizzer 
shows up until NBC’s “Price Is Right” in 16th place). 


Here’s the lineup: 

Miss America Telecast .. (CBS) 38.8 

Gunsmoke ......(CBS) 36.3 

Have Gun, Will Travel ..(CBS) 31.1 

Lucy Reruns . .tCBS) 29.7 

I’ve Got A Secret (CBS) 28.9 

Wells Fargo . ;.\V .......(NBC) 26.1 

Frontier Justice _.. . . ..(CBS) 25.7 

Wyatt Earp . .(ABC)' 25.3 

Wanted Dead or Alive .. (CBS) ‘ ; 25.2 

Ed Sullivan .. ......(CBS) 25.1 


Can’t See the Dancin’ for The 
Camera Angles, Bud Yorkin Laments 


Hollywood, Sept. 30. H 

Television chpreography and 
dancing has lost much of its fresh¬ 
ness and originality bedailse It’s 
become too camera-conscious, in 
the opinion of producer^director 
Bud Yorkin. .. Yorkin, who's pro- 
ducing-cLirectihg “An Evening With 
Fred Astaire,” first of two’ Astaire 
specs for Chrysler, on NBC-TV 
Oct. 17, hopes to avoid this pitfall 
on Astaire's tele debut. 

Yorkin has found that too many 
choreographers worry about the 
camera angles and the photography 
instead of 'concentrating on the 
creation of good dances, with the 
result that dancing on television 
has tended to become stereotyped. 
“It’s the same as a dramatic show,” 
he observes, “the important thing 
is the story, the script. The tech¬ 
nical details are secondary to the 
story, and any problems can be 
solved quite easily. Similarly, in 
television choreography, the im¬ 
portant thing is in the creation 
of the dance. Too many choreog¬ 
raphers tend to be influenced by 
their consideration of ‘how will 
that photograph* instead of how 
will that dance.” 

With Astaire and his choreog¬ 
rapher, Hermes Pan, Yorkin has 
taken the position of letting Pan 
go ahead with creation of his 
dances without regard to the tech¬ 
nical problems. “Once he’s fin¬ 
ished the dance, then we can make 
minor technical ! adjustments for 
the cameras. The important thing 
is the dancing itself, and we’ve de¬ 
parted from the ordinary in giv¬ 
ing each dance a beginning, mid¬ 
dle and end.” 

Even where a choreographic 
(Continued on page 44) 



Authors on Series 

Greensboro, ; N.C., Sept 30. 

Nine top American authors hi e 
been secured for a. series of na¬ 
tional network broadcasts entitled 
“American Ideas in the 20th Cen¬ 
tury” it was announced at the Univ. 
of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, by 
Elmer Oettinger/ director of the 
NBC-financed project by the Na¬ 
tional Association of Education 
Broadcasters. 

Thirty-minute dramatic sketches 
will be written by Pearl Buck, Ger- 
aid Johnson, Paul'Green, Richard 
Adler, Frances Gray Patton; Ber¬ 
nice Kelly Harris, Harry Golden, 
Kermit Hunter and Betty Smith. 
Four other authors will be invited 
to write half-hour plays for radio, 
Oettinger said. Playwright * Paul 
Green of Chapel Hill is a consul-, 
tant for the series.' 

The play will begin in October 
and will be heard over about 75 
NBC stations. 

This is. the seventh series of 
sketches to be presented by NBC, 
and the current series will origi¬ 
nate at the Univ. of North Carolina 
ftnd be produced through the coop¬ 
eration of the University’s Depart¬ 
ment of Radio, Television and Mo- 
tioii Pictures. 

. Oettinger added that talent'pro¬ 
vided by the Carolina Playmakers 
will assist with theproject. - 


More Freeloading 

This week’s' freeloading by 
the press, as part of the in¬ 
evitable fall preeih showings, 

. .included Phil Silver’s buffet 
dinner in the Burgandy Room 
of the Hotel Berkshire on Mon¬ 
day (29) with i preview of one 
of the new programs in the 
“Bilko” series. 

Tomorrow (Thurs.) the land- 
lubbing press will sail aboard 
a tugboat from the Hudson 
River with “Tugboat Annie 
Brennan” as the Elsa Maxwell 
of the marine brawl. Invite is 
from TPA, makers of “The Ad- . 
ventures of Tugboat Annie” 
series and urges the voyagers 
to be on hand early in order 
that Annie and Chowderhead 
Bullwinkle can toot the whistle 
on time mid the flotsam and 
jetsam on the Hudson River. 

ABC May Push 
Specials Pronto; 
Art Carney’s Spec 

Discounting the Oldsmobile-Blng 
Crosby specials this season, ABC- 
TV may not wait until *59-60^-as 
topper Leonard GoldenSon indi¬ 
cated recently—to kick off other 
specials. Network, which until 
now has shunned the one-shotters, 
is peddling an hourlong special 
starring Art Carney; and sponsor 
interest has already been reported. 
ABC is also" mulling a special 
based -on the circus and is eyeing 
as sponsor General Foods, which 
underwrote a CBS stanza two 
Xmases ago along the same the¬ 
matic lines. 

Carney show, called. “Art Carney 
Meets Peter and the Wolf,” has a 
story outline finished. McManus, 
John & Adams, on the market for 
a one-shot to be done around mid- 
season for Minnesota Mining, is 
said to have shown interest in the 
stanza, budgeted at $209,000 time 
Sc talent. 

Danny Melnick, ABC program 
(Continued on page 42).. j 

‘MASQUERADE PARTY* 
GETS LORILLARD NOD 

P. Lodllard after two weeks of 
hectic searching for a replacement J 
for “$64,000 Challenge,” (which 
fell under a cloud of, suspicion 
when a contestant claimed, he re¬ 
ceived the answers in a pre-game 
warmup), has selected “Masquerade 
Party” as replacement in the 
Thursday at 10:30 spot on NBC-TV. 

“Party” enjoyed a summer run 
on Mondays at 8:30- on CjBSrTV. 
The Ed Wolf package will preem 
tomorrow (2) with Bert Parks 
to host the panel affair. .Audrey 
Meadows has. been set as one 
of the * panel members. Program 
was set via I<ennen Sc Lewell, 
agency for Lorillard.. Robert Q< 
LeWis previousIy emceed show but 
he’d have'been faced with a pro¬ 
gram conflict v 


Abrams Sez He Can Now Deliver 


New Rating System For $4,000,000 

--- s --♦ 



The out-of-town (non-New York) 
tv reviewers aren’t taking too well 
to the idea of allowing Gotham 
critics to preview shows the day 
before and publish their notices 
in advance of the telecast. They’ve 
been complaining out-loud to CBS 
and claim that once* again they're 
being , treated as “second-class cit¬ 
izens.” This is a charge that popped 
up once before; last winter, to be 
exact. When * the out-of-town tv 
editors and reviewers complained 
to NBC chieftain Bob Sarnoff that 
the N. Y. dailes were .getting all the 
breaks on news releases and that 
little attention was being paid to 
the hinterland. 

In the case of the Du Ppnt “Show 
of the Month” presentation of “Har¬ 
vey” getting advance reviews last 
week, the out-of-towners have 
voiced their displeasure on three 
counts: (1) not that they favor 
the idea of advance notices, but 
it isn’t fair to restrict such closed- 
circuit performances for review 
purposes to N.Y. critics alone; (2)- 
since some of the Gotham review¬ 
ers (not to mention the wire serv¬ 
ices) are syndicated, a continua¬ 
tion of the practice .will result In 
out-of-town dailes also carrying 
these criticisms, thus rendering 
their own “after the show” reviews 
valueless; (3) the fact that they’re 
being bypassed in , such considera¬ 
tion once again illustrates the fact 
that the networks, the agencies and 
others involved in programming 
have little, if any concern for what 
they {the hinterland) reviewers 

thinlr , 

Even among the New York re¬ 
viewers, there seems to be a pre-; 
ponderance - of sentiment against j 
the practice of Reviewing shows 
in advance, with Jack Gould, of 
the New York Times, standing vir¬ 
tually alone in championing a per¬ 
petuation of the practice, .It’s 
Gould’s opinibn that in doing so 
he is rendering a service to Times ; 
readers. In . contrast to Gould’s 
opinion, the New York Herald Trib¬ 
une’s critic* John Crosby, came out 
last week with a blast against the 
practice, characterizing it as a 
“very bad one for. any one of a 
number of reasons.” Based on a 
sampling of people after the “Har¬ 
vey” experiment, Crosby main¬ 
tained that, far from whetting the 
appetite, -the advance criticisms! 
tended instead to dull the appetite.; 
Borne of those queried said that I 
“the show was an anti-climax after 
the notices. It was almost like see- j 
ing something that had already 
taken place.” I 

Prime mover of the practice has 
(Continued on page 44) i 

British Labor Party 
Comes to Grips With' 
Too Much Yank TV’ 

London, Sept 30. 

Americanization of British tv, 
.already debated by the Trades’ 
Union Congress and on:the agenda 
for this Week's Labor Party con¬ 
ference, Is to be discussed at the 
Conservative Party’s annual con¬ 
ference starting in Blackpool next 
Tuesday (7). 

A resolution has been tabled by 
a local' Conservative branch “de¬ 
ploring the continuing Americani¬ 
zation of our television programs 
in direct, contradiction <to the ex¬ 
press undertaking of the Conserv¬ 
ative Government to see jthat these j 
programs remain predominantly - 
British.” j 

Also on the Conservative con¬ 
ference agenda is a number of res¬ 
olutions. urging the Government 
to introduce legislation tor end 
the “archaic” Sunday Observance 
Acts. The motion picture indus¬ 
try, which has to pay. a substan- 
tial toll for the privilege ‘ of- open¬ 
ing on Sundays, has been press¬ 
ing for auch legislation, but in the 
last Parliamentary session the 
Government refused to find time 
to debate a motion sponsored by 
ttora than lOO M.P/*. j 


And Pear's Complainin’ 

Pittsburgh, Sept. 30. 

Town’s . newest tv station, 
WTAE, Ch. 4, has just signed 
Barry Kaye for a nearly two- 
hour show every Saturday 
night, which will make the lo¬ 
cal deejay just about the busi¬ 
est guy "there is in the com¬ 
munication field here or any¬ 
where else. 

Kaye’s regular berth is at 
NBC-o&o WAMP, where he 
spins platters for two hours 
five afternoons a week. A cou¬ 
ple of months ago, he started 
an Interview program, also 
over WAMP, from Holiday 
House nitery from midnight to 
2 a.m., Monday, through Fri¬ 
day and it was so successful 
that a few weeks ago he was 
given an extra-hour, beginning 
at ll’p.m. 

And no\v the tv show, which 
will he * a partially video 
version of .his Holiday House 
airer/ adds Saturdays as well 
to his on-the-air schedule. It 
begins Oct 11, frqin 12:15 a.m. 
to 2, to give Kaye a : total of 
around 27 hours a week. 

Xafeidascope As 
NBC Sun. Entry 
As 'Omni’ Hate 

In an effort to jazz up its Sun¬ 
day afternoon lineup. Bob Lewine, 
NBC veep in charge of program¬ 
ming, has come up with the “NBC 
Kaleidoscope” (temporary working 
title) which will alternate with 
'‘Omnibus.” 

Hour-long production, starting 
Oct. ID at 5 pun., will run the 
gamut of the arts and public af¬ 
fairs. Series will recreate, among 
other features, the rise of a Broad¬ 
way hit, the study of the ballet, .the 
examination of a great American 
dramatist and other .aspects of con¬ 
temporary life. 

Preem showing of the “NBC 
Kaleidoscope” will bring five NBC 
correspondents to Gotham for a 
probing of what's ahead for the 
final quarter-of the year. Subse¬ 
quently the series will unveil 
Charles Van Doren as host of a 
program called ‘The Ten Com¬ 
mandments” from an idea devel¬ 
oped by Jess Oppenheimer; ‘The 
Actor Prepares/’ behind-the-scenes 
story of .how an actor launches his 
career,* “The Best in the World,” 
offering the best of tv produc¬ 
tions from, around the globe and 
“Psychoanalysis” during-which an 
actual analysis, will be offered 
“live” during the program. 

Additionally, “NBC Kaleido¬ 
scope” will, do the- behind-the- 
scenes story of a major motion 
picture theatre- and. an in-depth 
appraisal of a famed playwright 
(Continued' on page 42) 


CBS* TEXAN’ 17.8, 

' ‘RESTLESS GUN' 18.6 

Looks like a real shootin’ match 
Monday nights 8. to' 8:30 with a 
couple Of westerns slugging it out.; 
The heretofore toprated “Restless, 
Guti’’ on NBC may have found its 
match (Trendex-wise) in CBS’ new 
‘Texan” - series, both shows run¬ 
ning neck and neck in the ratings. 
“Texan,” 17.8; ,f Restless Gun/’ 18.6 

Li the 8:30. slot, “Wells Fargo” 
reversed the previous week and 
went ahead of “Father Knows 
Best.” “Fargo,” 21:8; ‘Father/’ 
20.8 

Stunning surprise of the new 
ratings was Arthur Murray Monday 
nights at. 10 on NBC. It got a. 
whopping 23.9 as against “Studio 
One’s” 11.8 and 7.4 for ABC’s 
“This Is Music.” 


George J. Abrams, yeepee of 
Revlon and chairman of the Tadlo- 
tv committee of the Assn, of Na¬ 
tional Advertisers, recently said 
advertisers “are alarmed over the 
multi-million dollar decisions be¬ 
ing made on program ratings in 
which they had shaky confidence.” 
Abrams added that a test study of 
different rating procedures showed 
a variance of as much as 50% in 
some cases. 

Abrams along with Miles Wal- 
lach, prexy of Wallach Research, 
feel they have come up with the 
solution of the problem. Last May 
they came up with the. method of 
personal coincidental interviewing, 
conducting interviews while the 
programs’ are on the air, and also 
telephoning at-the time programs 
was aired. 

The interviewing system devised 
by Abrams and Wallach did not 
strike the fancy of the networks 
or the agencymen for the simple 
reason that it was too expensive. 
Abrams this week told Vahiety 
that the cost had now been reduced 
from an estimated $5,000,000 to 
$4,000,000 annually because of the 
new porto-punch interview method 
in which the interviewer can now 
punch out the answers on an IBM 
card. 

In studying the existing rating 
services Abrams said the audi- 
meter system measured dial 
changes minute by minute there¬ 
fore reporting “receiver-in-use” in¬ 
formation but it could not measure 
qualitative data, on the viewer of 
a program or that viewer’s iden¬ 
tification of the sponsor. He stated 
that he felt the diary method could 
provide all of the desired qualita¬ 
tive information but required re¬ 
porting throughout the day and 
night of the reporter’s viewing 
habits and depends on memory and 
recollection. 

Abrams opposed the personal in¬ 
terview because it relies on re¬ 
collection the next day . and the 
interviewer- uses a program listing 
guide to suggest program? the 
viewer might have seen. 


DntermeyerAxed 
In Frisco Shuffle 

San Francisco, Sept. 30. 

Jules Dundes, CBS vice-presi¬ 
dent running o^and-o radio sta¬ 
tions, arrived in Frisco and a few 
minutes later Informed Henry Un- 
termeyer, KCBS general manager 
for two-plus years, that he was 
fired. Maurie E. Webster, sales 
manager of KNX, Los Angeles, 
pulled into Frisco within 12 hours 
to become 'KCBS boss. 

' Webster figures t6 reap benefit 
of Untermeyer’s prime accomplish¬ 
ment: within past year Untermeyer 
has cut KCBS overhead $60,000 a 
year, despite the engineers' Ttlse. 
Untermeyer also managed to push 
a new, lower ratecard through 
New York seven weeks ago, was 
projecting better business. 

Dundes offered Untermeyer, a 
CBSer 21 years, a spot .sales job 
in New York, but Untermeyer 
nixed it, Witt stay in Frisco, accept 
his 21 weeks of severance pay and 
look for an Independent station to 
buy or some other business oppor¬ 
tunity. 

VAN HEUSEN COIN . 
FOR TERRY MASON* 

Phillips-Van Heusen Corp. sign¬ 
ed this week for one-third alter¬ 
nate .week sponsorship of CBS- 
TV's ‘Ferry Mason” scries effec¬ 
tive with this Saturday’s (4) show. 

The men’s apparel outfit joins 
the other regular clients. Sterling 
Drug and Parliament CIgaretf, 
both of which have signed for a 
regular run. 

Simultaneously, the web grabbed 
Colgate-Palmolive for a purchase 
of one-third Sponsorship bn fix 
Perry Mason shows starting Oct 
18. 


% 













24 


Vftoeaiay, ^October 1, 1958 


TV-FILMS 


y mmff 


Moving Into TV F3m financing 


Flamingo Telefilm Sties, the^ 
Herman Rush-Ira Gottlieb helmed 
outfit, has been holding talks with 
a farm machinery outfit, called 
Buckeye Corp., on the acquisi¬ 
tion Of fresh capital, 

'Exact nature of the talks are be¬ 
ing hushed pending the outcome. 
But it’s reported in the trade that 
the Ohio farm machinery company, 
listed on the American Stock Ex¬ 
change, has been giving tel efilm s 
the once-over for possible expan¬ 
sion. Move of Buckeye isn’t as 
outlandish as it may appear ©cl the 
surface—a maker of chicken incu¬ 
bators moving into show biz. 
Scranton Corp., formerly a lace 
making house, acquired Roach 
Studios and Mutual Broadcasting 
System as part of its. diversification 
program. 

Flamingo Telefilm Sales was 
formed about eight months ago 
following the exit of Sy Wein- 
txauh from the firm. Rush, for¬ 
merly with Official Rims, joined 
Flamingo’s Ira Gottlieb to run the 
outfit, stiil hacked by Joe Harris. 
coin. Since the exec switchover, 
Flamingo has been handling Dis- 
, tribtttors Corp. of America feature 
product for tv. It also has a first- 
run syndication entry, "Citizen 
Soldier/* as well as a library of 
product. 

Flamingo's prez Rush declined 
comment oh the Buckeye report, or 
rumbles that he is t a lk i n g with 
Roach Studios. He confined him- ; 
self to the generalization that Fla¬ 
mingo Telefilms is interested in ex¬ 
pansion and is open to propositions 
on additional financing and prod¬ 
uct* 


Hi Brown Helms 1 
Inti Airport’ 

"International Airport” starring 
Lee Bowman, .mil be produced by 
Himan„ Brown for United Artists 
Television. The series, to be shot 
in New York, will involve the ad¬ 
ventures. uf an airport special serv¬ 
ices topper. 

"Airport” is the fourth series 
set by UATV.'for. lensing of 39 
episodes. On the "Viking” series, 
to be produced by Byrna Produc¬ 
tions, Elmo Williams has been 
signed in the dual capacity as di¬ 
rector and supervising film editor. 
He will share directorial • duties 
with George M. Caban, who also 
will produce. Lessing 3s due to 
begin in Munich, Germany, in Jan¬ 
uary, *59. 

Other UATV properties include 
" "The Dennis O’Keefe Show,” and 
"The Troubleshooters,” starring 
Keenan Wynn. 

KELLOGG'S BIZ TO 
WRCV-TV IN PH1LLY 

Philadelphia, Sept 30. 

One of the major Philly tv buys 
of the season was registered with 
the announcement that Kellogg 
has purchased fi ve 30-minute 
time periods on WRCV-TV, for the 
programming of a strong smaRfry 
lineup. 

The. company sponsors four (5:30- 
6) sessions on station’s revamped 
late afternoon rOster, plus an ad¬ 
ditional early evening slot. List 
includes "Superman ” . "Woody 
Woodpecker” cartoons, "Wild Bill 
F ? ?kok/* and “Huckleberry 
Hound,” a new cartoon series. 
Cereal outfit bankrolls a second 
and completely different "Hiekok” 
pix on Sat. 

New Kellogg strip joins a re- 
9 vised afternoon list with "Adven¬ 
tures in Sherwood Forest/’ <5-5:30, 
MorL-Eri), and 6-6:30 adult fare 
with, the local tv preem -of "Union 
Pacific,” "Men of Annapolis,” 
"Danger Is My Business” and the 
return of "“People’s Choice” and 
the “Honeymooners.” 


‘Bold Yentnre’ for Ziv 

Ziv, now out. selling “MacKen- 
zie’s Raiders” is prepping "Bold 
Venture,” starring Dane Clark, as 
the next syndication entry. 

Ziv execs held a meeting in N.Y. 
on the new property, canvassing 
egional prospects. 


OF SCRATCHED FROM 
OVER-COUNTER UST1NG 

Official Films, currently engaged 
in merger talks with Guild Films, 
has been taken off the listing , of 
the Over-The-Counter Market in 
N.Y. . 

i Reason is that the rules provide 
that if a stock falls below one 
point, it automatically is taken off 
the Market’s listings for at least 
10 days. The high for Official this 
year was 196. Its drop marks the 
first time in M least four years 
that Official Films stock- has gone 
below the one point mark. The 
stock, in order to get hack on the 
market’s listing, must reach a.1% 
point mark over a 10 day period. 

Telefibn Blurb 
Outfits Working 
At Peak Outpnt 

Indications are the companies 
making telefilm blurbs are work¬ 
ing at "capacity business and have 
been for the 'past three to fOur 
weeks. It’s the annual rush to get 
the new pitchlines on celluloid at 
season’s start. . ■ ^ 

The upsurge of biz followed a 
serious falloff last spring and early 
summer, when the "recession” had 
a greater hold on.the economy;. 
Not ail the news from the film 
houses is so /good: Industrial film 
making is off, although in the last 
few weefas or so some of. the lost 
ground has been recaptured and 
some of the animation houses in 
commercials are- hard hit* 

It appears that the recession 
I caused the suffering among the in- 
[ dustrials. This is because the chief 
: components of the industrial line 
are soft sell institationals, and in 
a poor biz climate manufacturers 
seem to want none of that 
That industrials have reemerged 
to some degree is evidenced in the 
fact that just lately Caravel Films, 
which also makes commercials, 
sold three industrials. Same holds' 
for other major outfits, Trafnsfilm 
for one, which is. understood ttr 
have sold several - mifiti-reelers. 
Much of the new biz is reported' 
to be sales promotional stuff and 
other hard-sell celluloidal Rhea, 
hut even then the industrials are 
not working at the same capacity 
as commercials. 

The Tecessive climate touched 
animation, because the process 
more -expensive than a *Hve action” 
goods. The squeeze, though some 
fed it may' break shortly/ is still 
on, it is reported. Academy, a Com¬ 
pany with a big rep in Animation, 
went out of biz last month. 

• - r' 

Andrew Stone Eyes 
Hour Suspense Series 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 
Andrew Stone,/'vet indie pro¬ 
ducer-director, is setting his sights 
on television. Stdne, who recently 
completed "The Decks Ran Red” 
under a four-pix deal With Metro, 
is discussing a suspense-mystery 
anthology of One-hour film shows 
tentatively tagged "Jeopardy.” 

Proposed deal calls for Stone 
merely to supervise series rather; 
than final writing, producing or 
directing. He already has submit¬ 
ted treatments for first 13 seg¬ 
ments. 


KB Mall’s WPIX Boys j 

In One of the few program buys; 
on WPIX, N.Y., American Tobacco 
has ‘bought alternate sponsorship i 
on '"-Flight” and ‘Decoy/’ Indie, j 
despite “scarcity of program buys 
by sponsors, has been doing fine 
biz with participations, inking over 
$2,000,009 in biz for the fall season, 
American Tobacco will use the 
two adventure skeins for Pall Mali.; 


WPIX Gets Code Sticker 

. WPIX, N. Y., ha# become a sub¬ 
scriber to tfie Television Code of 
the National Assn, of'Broadcasters. 

Leavitt J.Pope, v.p. and opera¬ 
tions manager, said - the indie 
joined because of its belief that 
"only through voluntary member¬ 
ship in the code can the broadcast¬ 
ing industry police itself and help 
fend off pressure from governmen¬ 
tal regulation.” 

Other indies in N. Y., WNEW- 
TV, WNTA-TV, Newark; and WOR- 
TV are not NAB code subscribers. 



In Sywfcatkm 


in syndication,' too, the comedy: 
shows are looking Up. 

, CBS Films, which had a rerun 
ball with Jackie Gleason’s "The 
Honeymooners/’ decided that this 
was the season to, come out with, 
a made-for-syndication, first-run. 
vidplx series: In the past, virtually 
every made-fof-syndlcation comedy 
skein had a rocky road, many of. 
them .not recovering costs. 

Syndication, being a "bread and 
butter” affair, couldn’t invest in 
top comedy talent/ nor laugbem- 
up scripters. Against the. network 
comedies, many:of the syndication: 
entries looked like poor relations. 
Business, in short suffered and syn¬ 
dicators stuck mainly to action- 
adventure. 

But syndicators may take a fresh 
look at the comedic field the next 
time around-"CoL FlaCk;” which 
is the only first-run. laugh-em-up 
syndication show In circulation at 
this time, is gamering all sorts’ of 
sponsor coin. Of the 80 markets 
sold, the majority of them are 
directly with advertisers. 

The sponsor .list includes Stand¬ 
ard Ott/of Texas, Anheuser-Busch, 
Pacific Gasfc Electric, Heidelberg 
Brewing, Colgate - Palmolive, 
Krtger Co., Dayton Power A Light, 
Bell Bakeries; Haas-Davis Packing, 
‘Oklahoma Gas & Electric, Midland 
Federal Savings tc Loan Assn., 
Loblaws Super Markets. 

"Col. Flack”1ias turned out to he 
one of CBS Films’ fastest selling 
first-run syndication entries other 
than "Gray Ghost” 

GILBERT ROLAND’S 
‘AMIGO’MG SERIES 

Hollywood, Sept. SQL 

Gilbert Boland may star in a 
new tidpix series, "Amigo” for 
Metro TV. Negotiations are cur¬ 
rently being finalized for Roland 
to/play the lead role, that of a San 
Diego detective. j 

■ Richard Maibaum, production j 
chief of Metro TV, ia hKufling the 
Roland negotiations, Plano are to 
put Don Siegel on the vehicle as ■ 
producer-director. DariMainw#ring 
wrote the pilot scrhrt. 

It’s understood Maibaum is plan¬ 
ning ffie new entry as an adventure 
series, not -a. mysterloso. Plot line 
has main character a liaison officer 
between -San Diego and Mexican 
police, so that hi# adventuring 
takes place both sides of the 
border. 


Heilemah’s Renewals 

OnZivVSeaHimt* 

Heileman Brewing, which bump¬ 
ed a renewal 'on "Sea Hunt” in 
Milwaukee in favor - of '"Citizen 
Soldier/’ has renewed on Ziv’s 
underwater -skein in a number of 
its principal market# 

Ziv renewals for Heileman in¬ 
clude Chicago, Madison, La Cross, 
Green Bay and Wausau. Heileman 
picked un "Soldier” in Rockford, 
HI., Davenport, la., and Eau Claire, 
Wise. 


Tap Freeman for by’ j 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. \ 

Everett Freeman Is new exeeu-; 
live producer of Alan -Ladd’s forth¬ 
coming Jaguar Productions -tele-: 
series, “Ivy League/’ to star Wil¬ 
liam Bendix. 

"League” is fourth tv series be¬ 
ing prepped by Jaguar. I 


Top 20 National Syndicated Shows 

(Based on U.S. Pulse Spot Film Report for September) 

Compilation of the top 20 syndicated shows in the US. is based 
on 22 basic markets, representing about 16,391,500 tv homes . 
Pulse, in compiling the list; utilizes a weighted average keyed to 
the number of sets in each of the 22 markets. The weighted ever- 
age takes in only the markets in which the program has been tele¬ 
cast. In order to qualify, a property must be telecast in at leasts 
ten of the 22 markets. Total number of the 22 basic markets in¬ 
cluded in the rating compilation for each series, is listed in the 
brackets . 

. The markets include Atlanta, Baltimore, Birmingham , Boston, 
Buffalo , Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Detroit , 
Dos 'Angeles, Milwaukee, Mwneapolis-St. Paul, New Orleans, New. 
York, Philadelphia, Providence, San Francisco-Oakland, Seattle- 
Tacoma, St. Louis and Washington. 


Pregram 

No. of Major 
Markets 

Dist. 

NatL 

Wght. 

Ave. 

1. Sea Hunt - ... 


.Ziv . 

..17.8 

2. Highway Patrol ../ 


*Ziy 

i5,2. 

3. Honeymooners ..... 


.CBS ...... 

..14JL 

4. Mike Hammer .. .. 


.MCA ..... 

. ,13,5 

5. Death Valley Days 

......(20)/., 

.U.S. Borax 

..13.0 

6. San Francisco Beat 

.(11).,. 

.CBS . 

..12.6 

7. Decoy . 

-.do),.: 

.Official ... 

..12.2 

8. Gray Ghost .. 

..(14)... 

.CBS . 

..12.2 

8. Silent Service. 

.(20)... 

.CNP . 

..11.9 

9. Sheriff of . Cochise . 
Iff. Whirlybirds . .. 

...../(19). 

.NTA*. 

..11.8 


.CBS ...... 

• '.11.8 

11, State Trooper. 


.MCA ..... 

.*.11.0 

12. Badge 714 . 

.(13)... 

.CNF ...... 

..10:3 

13. Boots and Saddles . 

.(17)... 

.CNP . 

..10,1 

13. Target .. 

.(IS)— 

.Ziv ....... 

. .10.1 

14. Popeye .. 

— — (17)— 

,AAP ...... 

. . 9.9 

15. Harbor -Command . 

..(21)'. 

JZ.iv ....... 

.. 9.8 

1«T 26 Men . 


.ABC 

.. 9.2 

17. Frontier Doctor . 

./..,: (13)... 

.HTS ...... 

. . 9.0 

18. Code Z __ 


.ABC ...... 

.. 8.8 

18. Ojur Miss* Brooks .. 

..,...(13)... 

.CBS . 

.. 8.8 


Its Tone More flwuglit (&Coin) 

Was Given to Producer: Breslow 


‘FAR EAST DISPATCH’ 
ASTELEPIX SERIES 

Singapore, Sept. 30.- 
Shaw'Bros., in association with 
producer George Breakston, has 
begun filmin g a telefilm series 
titled ‘Tar East Dispatch. After 
six days of shooting in Singapore, 
the production unit left by air for 
Tokyo. . 

i Breakston last. did “African 
r Patrol” for Gross-Krasne. Peter 
| Dyneley, who also had a supporting 
I role in "African Rele/’ plays the 
; lead hi "Dispatch/* - 

Par library Buy 
: Steps Up Red Hot 
Mpls. Rating War 

- Minneapolis, Sept 30. 
Zooming ratings for it* nightly. 
10 o’clock ’"firstruns movie spectac¬ 
ulars,” heavily advertised in the 
newspapers and otherwise elabor¬ 
ately * exploited, have prompted 
WTCN-TV, Time, Inc., station here 
and the ABC local outlet to step 
Out and splurge still further in the 
acquisition of more topnotch screen 
product 

At*a dost of nearly $1,000,000 the 
station has bought the Paramount 
tv library of 700 pictures which in¬ 
clude •’Going My Way” and all the 
Bob Hope-Bing Crosby “Road” fea¬ 
ture* Hie deal was completed by 
Phil "Hoffman, WTCN-TV general 
manager. In New York. Local ex¬ 
hibitors feel it spells still more box- 
office grief. ^ 

The P aram ount assortment Will 
augment WTCN-TV*s already "larg¬ 
est in the Twin Cities” screen fea¬ 
tures library. The station also has 
the Warner Bros, and UA pictures, 
the latter including soms post-48 
releases, along with part of the 
M-G-M and HKO films. 

.. One other Twin Cities tv station, 
KMSP-TV/ owned by National Tele¬ 
virion Associates, also goes In for 
nightly feature pictures (9 o’clock) 
in too Big a way to suit the area’s 
theatreowners and its ratings are 
clim bing upwards;. too. The KMSP- 
TV array includes the 20th, SelZ- 
(Continued on page 40) 


► Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Function - of the producer in 
telefilms far transcends that of any 
other element in the production 
of vidpix, yet of all the creative 
elements, .the producer is the ana 
person..whose rewards don’t ex¬ 
tend beyond his salary. It’s about 
time, in the opinion of vet pro-, 
•ducer-writer Lou Breslow, that tha 
producer got V share of residuals, 
along with the current recipients* 
the' writers, directors' and actors. 

Breslow, currently, producing 
"Mackenzie’s Raiders” with Elliott 
Lewis for Ziv, characterizes tha 
telefilm producer as. a uniqua 
breed in show business*, iu term# 
of his responsibilities and efforts. 
He’s the one indispensable person 
who assumes all the responsibility' 
involved In production.' • 

"We’ve got - to sit on top. of 
scripts, -writers, directors, casting^ 
cutting, scoring, budgets and ev¬ 
erything else. We’ve got tq work 
on half a dozen scripts at the same 
time, whipping them into shape 
and sometimes doing one we’re not 
satisfied With. We’ve got to ga 
out on location every time to see 
that the director brings the film in 
on time without going over bud¬ 
get We’ve got to fight for actors 
and directors with the front of- 
(Continued on page 40) 


gland’s Dual 
Role in Tdepix 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 
Deal has been set -whereby* Ray 
Mmaqd will produce and'star in 
a telefilm series—as yet untitled— 
which will be a co-production, be¬ 
tween his Mirada Inc, company and 
Revue Productions. 

Milland, who last week checked 
into his office at Revue to begin 
work on the series, will essay, a 
suave man-of-the-world, “a man to 
whom things happen,” in the se¬ 
ries. Exteriors will be shot in 
locales such as Paris, Mexico City 
and London, with all interiors to 
be done at Revue, 

Milland is aiming; for a January 
air date for the series, with 39 vid¬ 
pix to be lensed beginning in the 
near future. Once production be¬ 
gin# he will probably assign . an¬ 
other producer “to the show because, 
he will be., busy ^starring itf it.' 
Three^ sponsors are dickering , for 
series which would be network. 









































Wednesday, October l r 1953 


PTB&ETt 


TV-FIOM 


25 


PRE-’48’S 



JACKPOT 


Milt Gordon’s $1000,000 Largesse 

Milt Gordon, who in five years time, parlayed his Television. 
Prof rams of America operation into a $11,350,000 sale of Jack 
Programs of America operation into a $11,350,000 Sale to Jack 
fits with key executives and employees of the company; it's been 
learned. All told about. $1,000,000 is being divvied up among his 
principal aides; 

Among the major beneficiaries are Mickey Sillerman, exec vee- 
pee of the syndication outfit, and Leon Fromkess, executive pro* 
ducer. Manny Reiner, chief of foreign sales/ also shared in the 
largesse. 

Severance checks were distributed to division managers and 
even the rank-and-file within the TPA org. - 

Wrather and Gordon signatured final transfer papers over the 
weekend. Gordon; exiting the new company, is setting up his own 
offices but will stay out of distribution. 


Ownership Stake in Prod-Distribution 


No sooner was the ink dry on 
the finalization of Jack Wrather's 
Independent Television Corp. tak¬ 
ing over Television Programs of 
America (a transaction involving 
$11,350,000) than Michael M. Sil¬ 
lerman, exec veepee of TPA, 'up 
and resigned from the merged op¬ 
eration over the weekend. Which 
means that the combined ITC-TPA 
operation will function -without 
TPA’s two key men, Milton Gor¬ 
don, principal owner and board 
chairman of TPA, and Sillerman. 
Gordon is setting up his own com¬ 
pany to finance projects, within 
the show biz orbit (though staying 
out of distribution). • 

Sillerman’* resignation.stemmed 
primarily from the fact that both' 
he and Walter Kingsley, the presi¬ 
dent of ITC-TPA, would be operat¬ 
ing in pretty much the same area, 
both having their background in 
sales. Interesting to note is that 
both men came out of the Ziv 
sales setup. 

Speculation at the moment with¬ 
in the tv film industry is where 
Sillerman will go. With a back¬ 
ground encompassing..* founder- 
prexy status of Keystone Broad¬ 
casting Co. (as a pioneer in syndi¬ 
cation radio) and exiting Ziv to 
partner with Gordon and Ed Small 
in the founding of TPA, he’s eyeing 
a possible ownership j>r joint own¬ 
ership in either a new producer- 
distribution setup or an existing 
major operation. 

Sillerman’s contract still had 
more than a year to run. In sever¬ 
ing his relationship he walked off 
with a fat chunk of coin, over and 
above his share of the capital gains 
profit-taking from the sale of TPA. 

ITC-TPA now labels itself as the 
“dominant' company in worldwide 
tv film production. and distribu¬ 
tion.” 


Sun 03 Plays It 
By Ear m Vidpix 

Sun Oil Co., via William Esty* is. 
buying individual availabilities in 
markets rather than a syndicated 
program for citv-by-city spotting. 

The approach for the multi-mil¬ 
lion dollar account doesn’t pre¬ 
clude the agency from buying a 
aeries for spotting throughout the 
country. Agency is looking at 
properties and will continue to 
give fre6h series the once-oyer. 

Agency found that buying local 
time availabilities from stations has 
proven out well for another Esty 
client in the past. It was found 
that client got a better shake in the 
most desired time period, under 
the local time availability ap¬ 
proach. . 

Par Library (or KMOX 

^CMOX, St. Louis, bought the 
entire Paramount library from 
MCA TV,, putting the Paramount 
pix in 16 markets. 

Other recent sales included: 
WBFMrTV and WTTV, Indianapo¬ 
lis; WTCN-TV, Minneapolis:. and 
KU TV, Salt Lake City. Roth 
WBFM-T and WTCN-TV are Time, 
Inc. stations. 


CNPYN.Y. Sweep 

California National Productions 
has New York .tv “In-the can,” 
what with 14 series being exposed 
in the Gotham market for an ag¬ 
gregate of 10 hours of airtime 
Weekly divided among the city’s 
seven outlets. 

Not only are all seven stations 
carrying CNP film this season, but 
the syndication sublid of NBC is 
represented every' night of the 
week in New York City. 


Tape Cues Roach 


Syndication Biz 

Hal Roach Jr., feels that video 
tape is the coming thing, and he’s 
busily making plans in that direc¬ 
tion. 

First, there’s the partnership 
deal with Guild • Films,' under 
which Guild utilize* the Coast' 
Roach Studios. for taped produc¬ 
tions. Second, Roach plans to 
equip a tape mrfchinh at the Mu¬ 
tual Building in N.Y. for eastern- 
production. Roach is board chair¬ 
man of Mutual Broadcasting Sys¬ 
tem, recently bought out by the 
Scranton Corp., which now owns 
both Roach Studios and MBS.' 

Roach freely acknowledges that 
he’s eyeing the syndication field 
on bis trip East He says he Wants 
to. get his company into the syn¬ 
dication biz, either via setting up 
a new organization or acquiring a 
going syndication- house. . 

Roach was pf the opinion that 
big, important show's will remain 
on film for period of time, follow¬ 
ing which there will be the wide¬ 
spread use of tape. The tape de¬ 
velopment “will allow, us to get 
into the spec field” for network 
slotting, according to. Roach. Taped 
shows also will be made for syndi¬ 
cation. 


‘Lone Ranger’s’ Do-Good 
Role (Peace Patrol) May] 
Branch Out in Britain 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 
Television is bringing American i 
promotion techniques to England. 
Britain’s National Savings Com¬ 
mittee, headed by Lord Mackin¬ 
tosh,which handles England’s gov¬ 
ernment savings bonds campaigns, 
.is now weighing use of “The Lone 
Ranger. Peace Patrol” campaign 
which has proved successful in 
sparking sales of U.S. Savings 
Stamps among school children. 

U.S. Treasury enlisted the Lone j 
Ranger property from Jack Wrath¬ 
er and planned the promotional 
campaign around the- character and 
actor Clayton Moore with Wrath- 
er’s Bevhills publicist Lou Smith. 
Since July, when*the promotional] 
plan went into effect, savings 
(Continued on page 40) 


9,000 FEATURES 
POURED INTO TV 

By MURRAY HOROWITZ 

In about three years of selling, 
the pre-’48 pix of the major stu¬ 
dios have topped the $200,(XH),000 
mark from the tv market. 

From here on in, the outlook is 
for a sharply diminishing gross 
from the video source—not because 
the market has contracted, but be¬ 
cause the supply of fresh pix will 
be a comparative trickle. 

The only fresh vault now making 
the rounds is: the Paramount oldies 
and the way things are shaping up 
It looks like MCA TV will get the. 
top dollar on the 700* MCA TV' 
has hit about $30,000,000 in 15 
markets with these. . It’s not. that 
Paramount cinematics stack up in 
quality superior to Metro's pix, but 
MCA came into the market in the 
*‘bottbm-df-the-barrel” period and 
is reaping the rewards stemming 
from relative" scarcity.' 

The over $200,000,000 mark rep¬ 
resents contracts inked, payment 
on which will extend over a six to 
seven-year period. The gross was 
achieved with" approximately 4,500 
pre-’48 features coming from the 
vaults of Warner Bros., Metro, 
Columbia, Universal, Paramount, 
Republic, BKO Radio. Piptures, 
20th-Fox and United Artists. 

If the gross was calculated on 
nil features released to tv, taking 
in the indies such as Pine-Thomas 
and the foreign pix making the .tv 
rounds, it would be way over $225,- 
000,000. All in all, from 8,000 to. 
9,000 features have been dumped 
on the tv. market and the channels 
utilized the pix like * “drunken 
sailor,” to borrow a phrase once 
used by Oliver A. Unger, National 
Telefilm Associate* prexy. 

UA’s Post-’48!s 

It should be noted that United 
Artists-is releasing post-’48’s, as is 
Republic Pictures. UA, as a dis¬ 
tribution organization, has been im¬ 
mune from the Hollywood guilds 
demands that it 'be cut in on tv. 
residuals on all pictures made after 
August, '48. Republic, whose stu¬ 
dio no longer is in production, also 
has taken off on the post-’48’s, with, 
the guilds apparently unable to 
enforce retaliatory action on a 
shuttered studio. 

But the UA and Republic grosses 
are small compared to those real¬ 
ized from Warner.Bros. ($32,000,- 
000), Metro ($52,000,000), et al. 
What the free exhibition of the 
oldies has meant to the boxoffice 
of theatres playing current attrac¬ 
tions is history. 

But the question remains what 
would have happened to Loew’s 
without the assured Income of $52,- 
.000,000, a good chunk of which has 
been plowed back into the Com¬ 
pany. 

As to the post-’48 issue, it’s the 
stormiest brewing in the trade. Ex- 
|.hibitor organizations are up in 
arms against any fresh push of fea¬ 
tures In the tv market, with Thea¬ 
tre Owners of America advancing 
a plan to buy these pix to keep 
then* from tv. The guilds and the 
motion picture companies remain 
far apart on what part Of the tv 
|.pie should go to the talent unions 
as residuals. 

Pix distributors to tv are cynical 
about the exhibitors efforts to keep 
the post-’48’s from tv. They feel 
the dike will break as soon as one 
of the major motion picture com¬ 
panies is in need of ready cash. 

But even with the post-’48’s hit¬ 
ting videoland, the number will be 
comparatively small compared to 
the 4,500 pre-’48’s from the vaults 
of the majors. 

What’s shaping up now for the 
"O ver-The-Air-Pix Theatre, U.SA ” 
is scarcity and rerunitis—and that 
phase is due about three years. 


KNXTs Enviable Status: 7 Years 
Of First-Run Product Still On Tap 


SG Ups Sales Staff 

Three salesmen this week and 
one last were hired by Screen 
Gems syndication department.- 
Hired by Bob Seidelman, sales 
manager of the Columbia subsid¬ 
iary, were Ralph Mitchell and 
Robert Kraus and Charles Mason. 
Week ago, Arthur Greenfield 
moved into the company. 

Mitchell and Kraus move into 
the central division, under Stan¬ 
ley Dudelson, Mitchell coming 
from SG’s' Canadian affiliate and 
Kraus from'J. Arthur Rank in N.Y. 
Mason—reporting to ‘ Frank Stone, 
the ana manager ih the* southern 
division—was general manager of 
WEDU-TV, Tampa educational 
station. Greenfield, a veteran of 
Universal, is with the SG western 
division. . 


More TV Film Newt 
On Page 45 


Hock of Entries 
For Next Season 


Loew’s board of directors has 
given the greenlight to its Metro 
TV subsid to go ahead with proj¬ 
ects for the ’59-’60 tv season, allo¬ 
cating a budget which could en¬ 
compass from five to 10 pilots. 

Charles C.' (Bud) Barry, .Metro 
TV v.p., leaves for the Coast this 
week' for extended huddles with 
Sol Siegel, Loew’s v.p. in charge pf 
the studio, and Richard Maibaum, 
exec' producer of Metro TV. • 

Only Metro TV production on 
the lot now. is ‘Thin Man,” whiph 
Colgate renewed for 13 weeks. 
Lending on “Northwest Passage” 
has been completed. A trio of the 
“Passage” vid segs will be released 
abroad as a theatrical film. 

One of the projects up for discus¬ 
sion on the Coast is "Father of the 
Bride**’ Benton and Bowles v.p. 
Tom McDermott will join the 
Metro execs on that one. Agency’s 
client General Foods has agreed to 
put up over $100,000 for the 
production of a pilot and sub¬ 
sequent scripts. 

Another project in the works is 
an hour-long suspense-mystery an¬ 
thology, tentatively titled “Jeop¬ 
ardy.” Producer Andrew Stone 
has been, conferring with Metro 
execs' on that one. Other story 
properties and ideas will be mulled 
at the studio confabs. 


Gries-MacDonald Head 
New SG Syndication 


A special unit responsible for 
the creation of it least three new 
Series for first-run syndication per 
year has been set-up by Screen 
Gems. 

Topping the new production unit 
on the Coast for the Columbia 
subsid will be Tom Gries, tv pro¬ 
ducer-director-writer, “appointed to 
the new post of director of syn¬ 
dicated program production. Work¬ 
ing with him will be Wallace Mac¬ 
Donald, whose post will "be director 
of syndicated program develop¬ 
ment. 

First project will be the super¬ 
vision of. a new series, titled 
“Stakeout,” to be produced for SG 
by Sam Katzman. New show, star¬ 
ring Walter Matthau, will be based 
on the criminal investigations of 
the Florida Sheriffs Bureau. Skein 
Is scheduled for release in Janu- j 
ary, ’59. A similar project “Talla¬ 
hassee,” also starring Matthau, 
failed to find a network berth this j 
season. „ ' 1 

As in the case of SG’s network : 
operation, Gries and MacDonald 
wiU be charged with the responsi- 
(Continued on page 44) 


Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

The industry trend-seekers 
who’ve already begun to worry 
about what kind of programming 
will replace feature films ma y be 
somewhat premature. If KNXT, 
the CB§-TV o&o here, is any ex¬ 
ample, there’s enough of feature 
film available to carry solid pro¬ 
gramming of the late-nighters well 
into-1966. 

Station’s estimate is based on 
its backlog and its amortization 
schedule. KNXT recently bought 
the Paramount library under a 
seven-year, seven-run deal for $7,- 
000,000, and is finalizing its amor¬ 
tization table on the package. Bill 
Alcine, manager of film program¬ 
ming, estimates the preponderance 
of the Par films won’t get their 
first tv showings until well into 
1963 and 1964. Nor is the Para¬ 
mount package the only such case; 
Alcine states that some pix In the 
United Artists and Flamingo-DCA 
packages won’t be played ’until 
then. 

. All of which points up the fact 
that feature film programming, in 
spite of the eventuality that the 
well of pre-48 films will run dry, 
is far longer-lived than it’s given 
credit for. KNXT, although it has 
the Paramount library, isn’t an 
extreme case; unlike its sister sta¬ 
tion in New York, WCBS-TV, it 
doesn’t have the Metro pix as well. 
No doubt there’ll be a station in 
every market. Which to a greater 
or lesser extent, will be in a com¬ 
parable position to KNXT. 

That ’ seven-years-ahead sched¬ 
ule is dictated by both physical 
and economic necessity. ^It’s got to 
amortize its films over a long peri¬ 
od, to begin with, and beyond the 
Par library, has a backlog of 700 
other pix which must be played 
off in advance of or simultaneously 
with.the Par films. It’s a staggered 
schedule of playoff, with the re¬ 
sult that the other films will by 
and large take precedence over 
the Par package in scheduling. 
Moreover, even if the station ran 
one Par pic a night, it would still 
take nearly two years to firstrun 
those films alone, to say nothing 
of other packages in the library. 

Hence, KNXT, for one, has no 
worries over the imminence of the 
(Continued on page 45) 


New Vidpix Segs 


Most of the new syndication 
product h’as. found a berth in the 
seven-station New York market. 
Only long-standing syndicated ser¬ 
ies yet without a first-run berth 
in N.Y. is Television Programs of 
. America’s “New Adventures of 

Unfc Set 3 Yearly gg?*' chan -” “ d Zlv ' s “ Dlal 


Indie WPIX remains the most 
heavily telefilm programmed sta¬ 
tion In the market. Daily News 
station has picked up “Flight,” 
“Col. Flack,” and “Divorce Court” 
(tape), among the newer arrivals. 

WNTA-TV, Newark based, ha* 
accounted for “Danger Is My Busi¬ 
ness,” and will be the showcase for 
the first-run telepix of the NTA 
Film Network, “How To Marity A 
Millionaire,” “This Is Alice” and 
“Man Without A Gun.” 

WRCA-TV will telcast “U.S. Mar¬ 
shal,” with “Rendezvous” slated 
for a January start. WCBS-TV has 
“N. Y. Confidential”; WNEW-TV, 
"Divorce Hearing”;. WABC-TV, 
“Tugboat Annie.” 

Major first-run properties re¬ 
cently put on the market which 
have yet to land a N.Y. berth in¬ 
clude “MacKenzie’s Raiders,” Ziv; 
and “William Tell.” NTA. 

Entrance of a revived WNTA-TV 
has bolstered the market for syni- 
cated product. But WOR-TV, which 
accounted for some first-run buys 
in the past, has pulled in its horns 
in the syndicated field, concentrat¬ 
ing on cinematics. 



26 


RAMO-TELEVISION 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


f^GilETr 


AD the‘Giants’ Are Accounted For 
As Automotive Sponsorship of TV 
Shows Tales Turn for the Better 


By JACK BERNSTEIN 

The network picture and the ac¬ 
companying profit and loss state¬ 
ments by the webs are in a large 
measure made up by the way the i 
automotive industry decides to 
spend its advertising revenue. With 
the recession scarce and sales 
"down, the automotives were cau¬ 
tious about television commit¬ 
ments, but the tide baa fumed and 
out of Detroit cornea word that 
nearly every major division of the 
corporate giants—General Motors, 
Ford and Chrysler-—will have some 
major stake in tv. 

The sale* picture is not as bright 
as in the ’57-’58 season but it is a 
far cry from the first clouds of dis¬ 
tress, that, for example, of Chrys- 
Jer’s decision to cut its corporate 
television from $5,000,000 to $900,- 
000. Chrysler Corp H outside of its 
tv network commitments on be¬ 
half of Dodge and Plymouth, is 
breaking a giant radio spot caip- 
paign to introduce the 1959 models. 
The corporation is undertaking the 
drive on behalf of all divisions 
featuring the entire line. In addi¬ 
tion to spot radio, the auto manu¬ 
facturer will sponsor Fred Astaire 
Jn a special to preem the new 
models,. plus tv programs for 
Dodge and Plymouth. 

During the month of July, two 
‘of the top five network advertisers 
were Chevrolet and Ford pas¬ 
senger cars, Chevrolet for the 
month of July alone spent $641,914 
in gross network time while Ford 
was not. far behind shelling out 
$479,418 in time charges. 

Ferd*S Heavy Sphirg e 

Ford Motor Co„ with its separate 
divisions^ Is making a heavy plunge 
into network television. Mercury 
division is the bankrpller of the 
hourlong CBS-TV "Ed Sullivan 
Show** alternate weeks. Ford is 
currently backing NBC’s '*Wagon 
Train** and Tennessee Ernie Ford. 
In addition to this, Ford Trucks 
has inked for a one time one-third, 
sponsorship of CBS’ ‘Terry Mason,** 
TheJatest buy was the purchase of 
Robert Saudek’s package of the 
New York Philharmonic on behalf 
of the Lincoln Division. Both 
Lincoln and Continental Will re¬ 
ceive top hilling on the fare slated 
for Sunday afternoons on. CBS. 

General Motors Carp, is swing¬ 
ing into first gear with a heavy tv 
schedule. Chevrolet division goes 
to, the post with two^sol^d tv per¬ 
formers, Dinah Shore and Pat 
Boone. The Buick division of Gen¬ 
eral Motors is picking up the tab 
on alternate * weeks of "Wells 
Fargo,** on NBC-TV, and on the 
series of Boh Hope specials. In 
all Hope will present eight specials 
on behalf of Buick. 

Not to be outdone by the Buick 
division, Pontiac has scheduled 
eight specs of its own to promote 
the division’s line. Specials lined 
up by Pontiac include "The Gin¬ 
ger Rogers Show," two Victor 
Borge’s specs. Perry Como and a 
dubious Mary Martin. 

Oldsmobile is riding with Patti 
Page on ABC-TV. In addition Olds 
has two Bing Crosby specs set, the 
first one scheduled for tonight 
(Wed.). 

Chrysler Corp. is presenting 
Lawrence Welk on behalf of Hie 
Dodge division on ABC-TV, Satur¬ 
days and a Plymouth Show with 
Welk Wednesday night. Fred 
Astaire will introduce the *59 line 
of Chrysler cars on Oct 17 via a 
spectacular to he presented over 
NBC-TV, A heavy spot radio cam¬ 
paign has been kicked off by the 
separate divisions. 

Even foreign cars are getting 
into the act with Renault taking 
alternate sponsorship of Edward 
Murrow’i "Small World,** 

Some of the auto manufacturers 
plans are still up in the air such as 
Studebaker - Packard and EdseL 
division of the Ford Motor Co. (Ed- 
sel is expected to take over one of 
the Sunday nights from Ed Sulli¬ 
van to preem the new model.) But 
lor the most part most of the *58- 
*59 tv plans have been set The 
networks seem to he breathing 
easier now that Detroit is once 
again on the television move. 

Shorts; The merger between 


Lennen. A Newell and Buchanan & 
Co. has been completed with the 
latter agency becoming a division 
of L&N. Negotiations had been 
carried on for approximately two 
months by top execs of both or¬ 
ganizations. With the added $9,000,- 
000 in Buchanan hillings, L&nnen 
k Newell is now at the $83,000,000 
mark. John Hen Jr., formerly 
president of Buchanan, will be¬ 
come senior veep in charge of the 
new division, William Dssheff, also 
of Buchanan, has been named a 
senior v.p. and management ac¬ 
count ^supervisor. The new ac¬ 
counts brought to the agency as a 
result' of the merger include Rey¬ 
nolds Metals Co.- Convaif Division 
of General Dynamics; Paramount 
Film Distributing Corp. (AB-PT); 
Warner Bros. Pictures, and AM- 
Par Record Corp. 

The W. B. Doner Agency and 
Peck Advertising are currently 
carrying on merger discussions. If 
the agencies joined forces, their 
combined hilling would be "an es¬ 
timated $20,000,000. Peck is a New 
York based agency while Doner 
has offices in Detroit, Chicago, 
Milwaukee, Philadelphia and Bal¬ 
timore. 

Charles H, Brower, president of 
BBDO, In a speech before the 
American Management Assn, last 
Thurs. (25), stated that billings at 
the agency are five times as high 
as they were in 1947. Two-thirds 
of the BBDO growth has come 
from the increased sales of exist¬ 
ing products and the introduction 
of new products by old clients. 

Guild, Bascom fie Bonfigli, San 
Francisco based agency, has pur¬ 
chased the marketing consulting 
firm of Richard D. Crisp Sc associ¬ 
ates, Chicago. , , - 

Ted Bates, which hastily substi¬ 
tuted "Top Dollar” into the "Dotto” 
slot, CBS-TV 11:30 a.m. cross tbe 
board, when a standby contestant 
blew the whistle on the latter show, 
has found "Dollar” outpulllng the 
competition. Bates has abondoned j 
the search for a replacement for j 
‘Dollar” when the ARB ratings] 
showed 4.3 for "Dollar” and a 1.0 
for "Concentration.” 

Bill Hoffman, veepee in charge 
of radio at BBDO, states that as of 
this week there is more ^network 
radio hilling than compiled by the 
webs for the entire *57-’58 radio 
season. 

Bryan Houston hat published a 
450-page 1958 edition of the “Ma¬ 
jor Coverage Study of Media and 
Markets.” 

Famous Artists Schools has ap-j 
pointed the Lawrence C. Gumbin- 
ner Agency to handle its advertis¬ 
ing ' 

Switches: Charles F. Adams has 


K&&’* Blue Ribbon 

Kenyon It Eckhardt has all 
hut Confirmed the fact that 
the ’ agency has landed the 
$6,500,000 Pabst beer account 
which had been housed at 
Norman, Craig & Kummel. 
The shift of the brewing ac¬ 
count marks the first major ac-. 
count shift in over a month. 
K&E which snared the Blatz 
account from NK&C to 1956 
will continue to handle the ac¬ 
count. 

Executives at K&E stated 
that the agency had been 
working on some Pabst prod¬ 
ucts for over a month, Chief 
products of the Pabst account 
are Blue Ribbon and Andeker 
beers, and Old Tankard ale. 
The Pabst beer account and 
Blatz were recently merged 


been upped to exec veepee of Mac-. 
Manus, John & Adams. Adams has 
been executive assistant to prexy 
Ernest A. Jones, He will continue 
to head up the Cadillac motor car 
division group in addition to tak¬ 
ing on other administrative duties. 

John E. Martin,' eopy Chief in 
the Minneapolis office of BBDO* 
elected a veep of tho agency. 

Don D. Rumbarger appointed di¬ 
rector of sales lor Audits and Sur¬ 
veys Co. 

Two staff assignments at Fuller 
Sc Smith Sc Ross show'Fritz Hell- 
man named copy director succeed¬ 
ing Gordon K. Zern who has been 
appointed account exec for a new 
FSB account, Cool-Bay. 

Leonard V. Strong HI, formerly 
Of Grey Advertising, has joined the 
copy department of Ted Bates, 

Steve Davis, formerly of Young 
Sc Rubicam, has joined the p.r. firm 
of Barkaa and Shalit. 

. Campaigns: Cunningham & 
Walsh, San Francisco, has kicked 
off a large spot radio drive for 
Contadina Foods in an estimated 
30 cities. The eight-week campaign 
schedule calls for 170 spots per 
week in the key cities. Spotty will 
be used in New York with 360 one- 
minute spots to ha scheduled dur¬ 
ing the drive. 

Kenyon Sc Eckhardt initiating a 
drive on behalf of Lever Bros, for 
its Praise soap. Spot tv campaign 
kicks off Oct. 5 in top markets, 

Warner-Lambert, via the Lam¬ 
bert fic Feasley Agency, is planning 
a heavy spot tv campaign for Ljs- 
terine starting Oct. 6, and running 
through Dec. One-minute spots 
and chainbreaks will be used in 
tho top markets. 

Repo: Robert D. Gilman, for¬ 
merly eastern sales manager of 
WNAC-TV and the Yanke* Net¬ 
work, Boston, has been appointed 
to the N. Y. sales staff of H-R 
Television. v 

Harry Smart has earned veepee 
stripes of Blair-TV and named 
manager of the Chicago office Of 
the reppery. John W. Davis has 
been appointed sales promotion, 
manager for the Chicago area. 

Katx Agency has Issued a “Spot 
TV Cost Summary** to aid adver¬ 
tisers estimate their spot tv budget. 


JWTs Door-to-Door Test of Comls 

Television commercials are strongly correlated to sales and as 
a result are off prime importance to the agencies. Sales messages 
are constantly being tested for tbeir effectiveness to determine 
whether those Important three minutes allowed In a half-hour 
telecast are being used to the best advantage. J. Walter Thomp¬ 
son, apparently not satisfied with their method of testing tele¬ 
vision commercials, has this 'Week devised a new method of put¬ 
ting the plugs to the test. 

Tinder the direction of Arthur KdponCn, in charge of new re¬ 
search techniques at J, Walter Thompson, Hie new method calls 
for the use of a portable movie sound projector resembling a tele¬ 
vision set which is wheel ed from door to door to get detailed Indi¬ 
vidual responses to JWT’s blurbs. The objective, according to Ko- 
ponen, is io develop an improved television procedure which In¬ 
cludes better sampling methods, individual commercial exposure 
(the commercials are shown on the portable machine), and per¬ 
sonal interviewing. 

Koponen, who has little use for psychological research studies, 
which includes motivational research, feels that it is more import¬ 
ant for the commercial to create a favorable impression of the 
product than to create only a favorable impression of the com¬ 
mercial itself. 

The Thompson study tries to obtain several measures: the re¬ 
call measure, to find out what Ideas are being communicated by 
the commercial; commercial ratings, ta see bow viewers react to 
^various characteristics of the commercial; product rating; tor see 
how the blurb influences the judgment of the product; product 
choke, a test to see how the commercial influences the desire for 
the product as shewn by an actual choice el brands; qualitative 
indications, to learn el the fueling and mood or sated by the com¬ 
mercial; and the testing Of programs, to. see how well the JWT 
list of network programs is liked and the influence of programs 
on the sales messages, 

For each commercial tested, the agency obtains 200 interviews 
obtained by block-probability samples in New York, Detroit, Chi¬ 
cago, Atlanta and San Francisco. 


■ TV-Radio ProdoctHm Centres ;i 

!»♦»+♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ «»♦♦♦♦♦«♦♦ , » nmmtumtmni. 

IN NEW Yi)RK CITY . . . 

WNYG director Sj Siegel off on a trip that will take him round the 
world. First stop is Italy for Prix Italia, then on to Israel, Lebanon 
and Far East where he’ll initiate further program exchanges with Ja.- 
pan, Philippines, etc . . , Alvin Boteta headed for the Coast to work 
with Herbert Brodkin on pilot of new'series, “The Blue Men,** out¬ 
growth of his "Playhouse 90** script scheduled for Oct. 30 . . . Arnold 
Moca is co-starring in the "Hitchcock Presents” opener on Sunday 
(5) and also heads for Europe this week . . . New School started its 
annual script writing clinic this week under direction of Flora Rheta 
Sehrelber and assisted by Joseph di Salvo. Feature -of course is a Try¬ 
out Theatre under direction of George Koadolf, exec producer of 
“CvS. Steel Hour.’* Guest lecturers include Edward Harrison, film, dis¬ 
tributor; Martin Magner, tv director; Herbert A. Carlberg, director of 
editing, CBS-TV. . 

WPBS Radio general manager Sam J. Slate In Chicago for meetings 
with CBS. Radio Spot Sales, agencies and clients ... Rosa Rid, tv-radio 
organist, will give a concert at Shelton High School, Shelton, Conn., 
under auspices of Shelton Klwanla Glub on Saturday, Oct 11... Tom 
Swafford, WCBS sales manager, In Princeton for the R. A. B. sessions 
... Beulan Garrick algned for supporting role in Hallmark’s' "Johnny 
Belinda” Oct 13 .. . Marian Carr currently appearing on "Eternal 
Light” and “Right ta Happiness” .., Den M arrow engaged by Bayer 
Aspirin via Dancer; Sample Sc Fitzgerald for three-week campaign on 
CBS-TV and NBC-TV . . . Matt Mattox left "Say Darling” company to 
taka aver choreography direction on the "Biittl Page Shpw” ... WCBS 
Radio’* BRI- Leonard is eh airman of’the benefit dinner and evening of 
racing Oct 9 at Yonkers Raceway for Assn, for Help of Retarded Chil¬ 
dren . .. Nelson Olsmsted fills in for vacationing Jim Lowe on WCBS 
Radio during weeks-of Oct. 13 and 20 .,. Zel deCyr recorded flock of 
tv spot commercials this week far Church & Dwight Baking Soda . . . 
Dick Stalhberger, WCBS Radio Sales promotion manager presented 
with All-American Distinguished Achievement Awird for service to 
youth of Bergen County, N.J. by Pop Warner Conference ... Paul Mira- 
sola, camera man with META, .became a pop last week. Itfs a girl 
named ROse Ann... WGBS Radio’s Jack Sterling giving up his New 
Canaan home lor larger quarters. Increase in family expected this 
month. * ’ 

i Richard Tregaskis signed to write teieplay for "Trouble in Test 
Cell Ten** for NBC-TV counter-espionage series, "Behind Closed 
Doors.” . * , NBC Opera Co.’s music and artistic director Peter Her¬ 
man Adler invited to conduct at Rome Opera next spring . . . Latest 
WNYG programs to join the Yoice of America programming sched¬ 
ule are "Critics Choke” with Walter Stegman and “International In¬ 
terview” moderated by Mary McDonnell . . , Wes Kenney, producer- 
director of NBC-TV*! "True Story,” makes his' Gotham acting debut 
Oct. 22 in "Night of the Auk” at Equity Library Theatre . . . Frank 
[ Cooper office propping new program in collaboration with CBS Radio 
[tagged "Fun Forum.” . . . Noreeu Laurenri, NBC-TV press dept, staff 
writer, married Jim Sherlock, formerly with ABC-TV and now teach¬ 
ing Junior high In N.Y.C. . . , Syd Zelinka heads for the Coast to do 
| a pilot script with Whiter Newman based on the short story '‘Willie’* 

! for upcoming tv series. 

Actress-announcer Mary Lou Forster just finished dubbing the ani¬ 
mated voices for both the mother and child puppets on the new Van¬ 
ity Fair tissues tv commercial . . . WLIB, N.Y., has a special taped 
program Saturday (27) devoted to Marion Anderson telling about her 
United Nations experiences . . . Mutual will launch a new public 
service show Oct 12, featuring college debates on timely topics. It 
will be titled “College Crossfire.” •< . . Philadelphia openings of Broad- 
way-headel stage shows will.be reviewed again this season on WOR’s 
[ "Music From Studio X.” Boh Laurence, theatrical critic for Philadel¬ 
phia’s WIP, will do the reviewing . . . Ziv’s subsld World Broadcast¬ 
ing Service has moved to new quarters In the Coliseum building . ; . 
BUI Todman sailing for Europe today (Wed.) on the S.S, liberie. 

Chria Bchcpkel does CBS-TY*a Belldane Handicap at Belmont Park 
this Saturday (4), and the following day reports Giants-Eagle* grid 
meetingfor the same web.«.. Carl Reiner guesting on Patti Page’s Oct. 
t shew... Ed Joyce narrating aeries of tv films for the American Bibla 
Society • • , Kay Thompson winged to Britain this week and is ap¬ 
pearing pn BBC-TV’s "Riverside One” today (Wed.) .'. . NBC h*s of- 
fidaUy. confirmed the fact that Heib Suseam is the web’s new director 
of special programs and as such will supervise the web’s 106 special* 
this season * . . Alice and John Griffin returning to WBAI-FM to¬ 
morrow (Thurs.) to do another season of their "Sidewalk Critics* Re¬ 
view” ... Albert Feldman, film ex-consultant with NBC bublic affairs, 
joins "Brains Sc B rawn” ns associate producer . . . Lew Grelst and Jim 
Kelly to WNEW-TV as salesmen . . . Arch Johnson of Broadway’s 
"West Side Story” starts- a running role on CBS Radio’s “Right to 
Happiness.” . ^. Raymond (Perry Mason) Burr in town for a CBS-TV 
publicity and client visit . ♦ . Vicki Vela into cast of CBS Radio’s 
"Young Dr. Malone” this week * . . Richard Adler penned eight new 
songs, both words and music, for CBS-TV production of "Little Wom¬ 
en** on Oct 16 . . . Paul McGrath new leading man in CBS Radio’s 
“Road to Life.” ,.. Billy Sands of the CBS-TV Phil Silvers Show and 
his wife Marsha produced and directed Jockey Guild Show for sixth 
straight year at Waldorf Sunday (28) . . . Bing Crosby’s four lads 
signed for upcoming appearance on Phil Silvers’ CBS-TVer. 

. Wfll Jordan will appear op Ed SUlliyan Show Oct 7? . . . Frankie 
Frisch has been inked by Mutual to do the World Series analysis on 
net’s."World To-day” show . .WLIB, N,Y., has offered it* Marion 
Anderson United Nations show to radio stations serving the Negro 
market in eight key cities as a public service. 

* Richard M. Pack, Westinghouse Broadcasting programming. veep, 
heading for Coast for looksee at WBC stations in San Francisco and 
Portland . . . “Best in Music” Sunday, Oct 5 on CRS Radio wUl deal 
with supersonic travel. Dick ElBson is scripting with Michael Brown 
composing opening number. Alfredo Antoninl will baton .., Marianna 
Norris and Dick Ellison scripting new "Jazz Is My Beat” program on 
CBS Radio Monday through Friday at 8:35 pan. Dick Tools is pro¬ 
ducer-director and Jim Lowe emcee . , . UN Day concert with cellist 
Pablo Casals will be seen over CBS-TV Sunday, Oct. 26 at 11 a.m. 
Concert will be staged at UN two days before and videotaped for tele¬ 
casting a* 90-minute special following Sunday. 

IN HOLLYWOOD . . . 

,Al Jagvls, Kl'WlJ deejay, polled his listeners on whether or not Ed¬ 
die Fisher’s records should be played .. „ H. Barnes Bishop, onetimy 
head of MCA’a band department on the Coast, named sales manager 
ot Metlox (dinnerware) . < . Dick Reibold moved out of BBDACT to 
Lennen & Mita b y n in BevhiQa as tv commercial producer . , , Mttton 
BSrie likes to work in closa to his audience ao NBC is moving 14k the 
seats at Burbank to make hint feel like he's working in a night dub 
... Gordon Curry, who drew caricatures in the early days of tv, is off 
on 40,000 mile junket through every state for American Banking In¬ 
dustry. HefUwketcb bankers, tape interviews, and guest on radio and 
tv shows * . . Dun Quinn's 16-year-old, John, saved the day for his 
Black-Foxe military academy with a flying tackle but ended tip in a 
(Continued on pag« 40) 



Pttneft 


KABIO>TELEV»IO!tr 


Wednesday, October 1958 


27 


Directors, AFH Dickers Also Due 

Already Involved in contract talks with American Federation of 
Television 8c Radio Artists, the industry before long, will have to , 
negotiate other important talent union contracts. 

The Radio-Television -Directors Guild pact with employer groups 
expires on Dec. 31, which means dickers should begin in early or 
middle December, when there is still a possibility that the AFTRA 
talks will be on. Oh Feb. 1, 1050, the American Federation of Mu* 
sicians contract expires, with those negotiations likely to overlap 
RTDG’s, since the latter will be fighting for an edge against tha 
Screen Directors Guild for tape jurisdiction. 

Webs will be bucking for a change in the royalties setup now 
imposed against them by AFM. Fee is 5% every time a program 
is shown. However, AFM oh the Coast has relaxed this ruling 
with telefilmers such as Desilu and the networks hope this has set a 
precedent by which to negotiate a reduction for themselves. 


Storer, Westinghouse Spanked As 
FCC Gets Tough on Politico B easts 


Washington, Sept. 30, 
The Federal Communications 
Commission is getting tough about 
political broadcasting. 

The Commission baa, renewed a 
group of AM, FM and tv licenses 
of Storer Broadcasting Co, and 
Westinghouse Broadcasting Co., 
while strongly scolding both com¬ 
panies for violating the law and 
FCC rules with politically-angled 
telecasts' last March. ] 

FCC said the two" companies, 1 
both with extensive radio-tv inter*! 
ests in major markets, did not 
“willfully” run afoul of Section 317 
of the Federal Communications 
Act, as well as FCC rules. But FCC 
added, the violations existed. Ex¬ 
planations by the two companies 
were dismissed as not being justi¬ 
fied excuses for what happened. 

Considering the previous good 
records of both companies in broad¬ 
casting, FCC said it would forgive 
—but not forget. The commission 
said in letters to the two compan¬ 
ies that it* would renew the expir¬ 
ing licenses Involved, But, FCC! 
said, the facts on what happened 
will be retained in full in both 
companies* files at FCC for future 
reference.' They were sternly 
warned not to get into the same 
trouble again. y 

Stirring up FCC was the telecast 
and broadcast by both companies 
of kineoscopes of bearings on the 
Kohler strike in Wisconsin hr the 
McClellan ’ Senate Labor Rackets 
Subcommittee la st M arch. The 1 
bines, made by WTTG-TV. here, 
were bought and paid for by the 
National Association, of Manufac¬ 
turers and provided free to certain 
Storer and Westinghouse stations. 

None of the stations Involved In 
the license renewal application* be¬ 
fore FCC identified the cuffo 
kines on the air es having been 
bankrolled by NAM. FCC said the 
law and the commission's rides re-: 
quirt such Identification both at 
the beginning , and conclusion of 
such a program. 

In both letters; FCC used one 
Identical punch line: . Your 

Conduct fell substantially short of 
that requirtd of a broadcast II- 
tContinued on page 43) 


WNEV-TY Going 
On Sports Spree 

WNEW-TV, N. Y , Is adding to 1 
Its live sports lineup this fall and: 
, winter. But the indie station is 1 
playing a “wait and see** game on 
the other new live shows it plans 
for this season's schedule. 

t*ast night (Tues.), station was 
alated to start a second weekly 
wrestling show in the 9-11 spot, 
this time coming from Bunnysidfi 
(Queens) Arena. It competes with 
filmed wrestling on WPIX, in the; 
same market. Move was made on 
the strength of ratings for its 
Thursday night wrestling, a show 
emanating from Washington, 
where Its sister station WTTG is 
located. 

- Bullish on sports, WNEW bought 
.Gotham -rights to Big IQ basketball 
from Siports Network, and. will be-! 

(Continued bn page -43) 


Code Post for Ward 

Washington, Sept. 30. 

Harry H. Ward, Continuity ac¬ 
ceptance supervisor for NBC in 
Chicago, has been appointed as¬ 
sistant director of Television Code 
affairs for the National Assn, of 
Broadcasters. 

Ward, who has been with NBC 
since 1948, will succeed Charles S. 
Cady Oct. 13. Cady resigned the 
NAB post to join WCSC-TV, 
Charleston, S.C., as national sales 
manager. 



WOR-TV, N. Y., and producer 
David Garth are negotiating to 
telecast high school games in the 
New York area. 

School authorities are described 
as amenable to the idea, as the sta¬ 
tion and producer are digging in 
to line up sponsorship. School 
authorities, under Garth's plan, 
would he given 'the right to ap-; 
prove the sponsors. Prohibited j 
categories would include beers and 
tobaccos. j 

. Planned line up Includes eight * 
games, seven to take place Satur¬ 
day afternoon and one Thankagiv- ] 
inf Day. Kickoff match would be 
Baldwin vs. Lawrence. 1 

Starting Monday («), WOR-TV 3 
will begin Its broadcast day at 
4 pm. midweek, cutting back to a 
“one-shift** eight-hour operating j 
day. Retrenchment of the pro-, 
gramming day was put in effect 
by station's new topper Robert! 
Leder, in another move to cot 
costs. Weekends the station wilL 
begin operation at 2 pm. Station, 
heretofore, had come on at 1 or 2! 
pm. during weekdays. 

'Reqrien' for aB’wiy 
Tryout Gets a PMy 
Showcase os fP. Radio 

_ Philadelphia, Sept. 30 

WIP claimed a radio first when 
it presented “A Play is Born,” the 
story behind the production of a 
Broadway play. “Swim in the 
Sea,’* the subject of the two-hour 
$ehiud-thericenes broadcast was 
net destined for a splash on Broad¬ 
way. The drama folded here after 
a two-week tryout run. 

Narrator Ed McMahon detailed 
the growth of the production from 
author to critics* reviews. Mc¬ 
Mahon collected more than 12 
horns of taped interviews, rehear¬ 
sal scenes, business discussions, 
and background sounds. He inter¬ 
viewed everyone connected with 
the play, then dovetailed the work- 4 
hogs of a hundred-odd people who 
turned the script Into the finished: 
product 

Author Jess Gregg, producers 
Harold Prince, Robert Griffith and 
Shirley Ayers, Fay Bain ter, direc¬ 
tor, stagehands, technicians, set 
and costume designers, all de- ; 
scribed their functions and an-’ 
ialyxed their ideas. 


LONG LIFE FOR 
FACES, 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 
Television's feared and fabled 
programming turnover, consider- 1 
. able as it is from year to year,: 
: nevertheless doesn't assume the: 
gigantic proportions It’S generally! 
believed to reach. Spot-check of 
the new fall schedules shows more 
than 26% of network programming 
in the “five-year club," while fully 
40% of the shows revolve around 
formats or personalities who've 
been around for five years or more. 

That 'five-year club*' qualifica¬ 
tion comprises programs which 
have maintained the same format 
Into a fifth season. A rundown 
shows 16 of them on CB5-TV 
(some <Jf which switched from 
other webs, but with star and for¬ 
mat Intact), seven on NBC and six 
on ABC. As to the others making 
up that 40%, list includes such fv 
staples who don't necessarily qual¬ 
ify under the five-consecutive-year 
consideration or ‘'same format” 
qualification but who’ve been 
around for a longer time than that. 
Latter'group Includes such stars 
. as Milton Berle, Arthur Godfrey 
(new format), Jackie Gleason, Ann 
Sothern, Garry Moore (with his 
new show, aside from the long- 
running ‘Tve Got a Secret”), Ten¬ 
nessee Ernie Ford, Dinah Shore, 
Perry Como and Eddie Fisher (all 
having gone from 15-minute to 
hour formats), George Gobel (from 
half-hour to alternate hour), Steve 
Allen (from "Tonight** to an hour). 
Jack Paar (morning to afternoon 
to night), George. Burns (turning 
solo) and Ed Wynn. 

The lineup of five-year entries 
includes “Lassie.” Jade Benny, Ed 
Sullivan, “GE Theatre,” “What’s 
My line?** “Father Knows Best” 
Danny ThOmas, Bed Skelton, ‘Tve 
Got a Secret," “TJ. S. Steel Hour,” 
“December Bride,” “I Love Lucy,’’ 
“Your Hit Parade,” Schlitz Play¬ 
house” “The Lineup,” “Person to 
Person** and “Name That Tune,*’ 
all CBS-TV. On NBC-TV, there’s 
Loretta Young, ‘Dragnet** “This 
Is Your Life,” Groucho Marx, the 
Gillette fights, “People Are Funny** 
and “Omnibus.” The ABC roster 
Indudes “You Asked for It,” “Voice 
of Firestone,” “Ozxie & Harriet,” 
the Wednesday night fights, “Rln 
Tib Tin” and “Walt Disney Pres¬ 
ents” (nee “Disneyland). 

The statistics themselves tell 
only part of the story. For gen¬ 
erally overlooked in the harum- 
scarum approach to television is 
the kind of stability indicated in 
the fact that 40% of video’s pro¬ 
gramming fare has made it through 
five seasons or more. Fact is that 
it's the Inferior programming that 
comprises the mass of the annual; 
turnover, a natural process of 
elimination, while the worthier 
fare stay* on. For every “Kraft 
Theatre” that's bounced in a sea¬ 
son, there are a dozen “Sally” or 
“The Brothers” or “Suspicion,” etc.. 

Adding to the overall impression 
of stability Is the list of four-year 
entries, including Lawrence Welk, 
“Wyatt Earp” “Cheyenne,” “Gun-: 
smoke” "The Mfflienaire” PhU 
Silvers, ’’Hitchcock Presents,” 
Beb Cummings, even the ABC-TV; 
“Jubilee” country music stanzas, 
variously known as “Ozark 
Jubilee” and currently “Jubilee,, 
U.S.A” 


CBS Chief Beneficiary . 
Of Cuter PrwbcU C#in 

CBS-TV. which wrapped up the' 
entire Florida Citrus Commission 
tv budget for the coming season, 
has all but scooped up the tv coin! 
for Carter Products for next sea¬ 
son. 

Of the nine shows bought byi 
Carter, CBS buttoned up seven, 
’To Tell the Truth,” “Doug Ed¬ 
wards With the News,” “Sunday; 
Newt Special” with Walter Cron-: 
bite. Pro Football Kickoff Series, 
Professional Hockey Games, The 
Orange Bowl Football Game and 
Gator Bowl Football Game. 



Wells Alerted to 4 'Critical Areas 
Id AFTRAs New Contract Demands; 
More at Stake Han 10% Wage Hike 

—--—----f 


Maria Schell's TV Bow 

Hollywood, Sept. SO. 
Maria Schell will make her tele¬ 
vision debut on “Playhouse 00** in 
“Word from a Sealed-Off Box” on 
Oct. 30. Actress was signed by 
producer Fred Coe for the Mayo 
Simon adaptation of a Henrietta 
Roosenberg New Yorker article, 
which Jack Smight will direct 
Actress just completed filming 
in “The Hanging Tree” Jurow- 
Shepard production for Warner 
Bros. 


Coast TV Now 
living’It Up 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 

Outlook for live programming 
originations here, extremely bleak 
as late as July, has perked con¬ 
siderably in the past few weeks. 
Result is that the Coast will orig¬ 
inate some hours a week of 
nighttime, as compared with an 
anticipated eight and a half-hours 
j back In July. Coast output wall 
compare favorably with New. 

: York’s 19 hours a week of live pro¬ 
gramming. 

Principal reason for the upbeat 
situation, insofar as the Coast is 
concerned, Is the downbeat spon- j 
sorship picture at the networks. 
Most of the newly added Holly¬ 
wood originations stem .from the 1 
reluctance of sponsors to buy into, 
the expensively trapped vidplx 
skeins and the subsequent with¬ 
drawal of the telefilms by the Webs. 
Replacements were lest costly live 
sustainers. Hence such added 
starters as “Pursuit” on CBS, “El¬ 
lery Queen” on NBC and (still ten¬ 
tative) “Traffic Court” and “Stars 
of Jazz” on ABC. 

If Hollywood's benefited in the 
upbeat, it’s a schizoid situation^ 
since the live shows are replacing 
scheduled vidfilm*' which would 
have been produced here anyway. 
“Pursuit,” for example, is replac¬ 
ing Ziv’s “World of Giants”; “Stars 
of Jazz” is going into the time slot 
tentatively intended for “Tomb¬ 
stone Territory,** * and “Queen” 
(Continued on page 44) 


Grand Jary Fed Some 
Fresh Ammunition In 
Qaiz of the Oncers 

The parade of former .“21” con¬ 
testants in the direction of the 
New York County District Attor¬ 
ney’s office continues not so mer¬ 
rily. Simultaneously, the grand 
jury it looking into various quiz 
shows and It Is anticipated that 
a Congressional committee or two 
will shortly be quixdng the quiz- 
aers. 

A major development in the 
“21” -case was James Snodgrass’ 
charge that he was fed answers 
to questions and has proof to back 
up his charges. Snodgrass had 
been questioned by the DA and 
was scheduled to go before the 
grand jury. Others who had been 
talking to the grand jury Included 
| Harold Craig, winner of $106,800; 
on the Barry-Enright show as well 
as David Mayer, a 10-week con¬ 
testant who bad won $47,500 .on 
the program. 

Meanwhile, NBC said it was sur¬ 
prised by Snodgrass’ charges and; 
was launching a thorough invests 
gallon. The producers of “21” said 
they had been told by the D. 
itbat the latter’s office hadn’t re- 
\ leased to the press any info regard-! 
[ing **21” and consequently attor¬ 
neys for “21” had advised them 
; not to give any statements at this 
time. 


Having had nine days to digest 
the contract demands by American 
Federation of Television & Radio 
Artists, the networks now believe 
the situation to be most serious. 
Webs invariably keynote the reac¬ 
tion of all employer groups in¬ 
volved in these bi-annual dickers 
and fear the negotiations will he 
protracted because the atmosphere 
of compromise will be less in evi¬ 
dence than ever before. 

In the judgment of the webs, the 
four critical areas are in the tele¬ 
vision code and concern rehearsal, 
revision in rates for across-the- 
board programs and the union re¬ 
quest for control of all tape pro¬ 
grams shown on network airtime. 
Fourth worry is the union’s de¬ 
mand that any network affiliates 
struck hy AFTRA must not be fed 
programming by the web signa¬ 
tories during the course of the 
fracas. v 

Industry received the demands 
Sept 22 and will meet for the sec¬ 
ond time on Oct 7, when employ¬ 
ers will make counter offers. 

The networks have not yet been 
a ble t o evaluate what the demands 
AFTRA has made for the 195B-1960 
contract will mean in actual dollar 
increases, but they say the de¬ 
mands call for an overall hike of 
“vastly more than 10%.” Latter is 
the increase AFTRA has asked in 
straight fees, .but it does not in¬ 
clude the “hidden” costs restating 
from a change in working condi¬ 
tions and hours. 

Giving the webs the feeling of 
compromise will be lacking in 
AFTRA’s attitude is the fomenting 
situation between the Federation 
and the Screen Actors Guild. As 
portrayed by the webs, the unions, 
in the fight centering on jurisdic¬ 
tional control of tape video, are 
each seeking import of actors, in 
the event the Issue comes to a vote. 
Hence, in the effort to establish its 
worthiness to handle tape, AFTRA 
“will hold intemperately” to de¬ 
minds that might before hare end¬ 
ed in compromise, webs say. 

Seen to be one of the two most 
critical areas is the grouped de¬ 
mand being made for changes in 
rehearsal time and wages. Accord¬ 
ing to the networks, the demand is 
four-ply: higher Tehearsal fees, 
fewer hours of rehearsal before 
overtime takes effect, stricter re¬ 
strictions on when rehearsals shall 
take place and increased fees for 
overtime rehearsal. 

Attitude of the networks, re¬ 
garding revision of rates on strip 
s hows , is that this particular 
AFTRA demand will eliminate for 
all practical purposes the discounts 
(Continued on page 44) 

$1,000,000 m New 
Orders for NBC-TV 

More than $1,000,000 in gross 
billings was obtained in the past 
two weeks at-NBC-TV as a result 
of eight advertisers placing new 
orders and one sponsor coming 
through with a renewaL 

Result of this sponsor Hurry 
brings to nearly $3,500,000 biz to 
the cash register of NBC-TV** par¬ 
ticipating programs since Sept. 1. 
Previously reported was more than 
$2,000,000 from six advertisers. 

Latest purchases were from Alli¬ 
ance Manufacturing Co. for partici¬ 
pations on “The Jack Paar show”; 
Northan Warren Corp, for Cutex, 
also on Paar program; Dormeyer 
Corp., Paar show. Other new 
sponsors Include Louis Marx Co.; 
Studebaket-Packard, Channel Mas¬ 
ter Corp., Menneh, and Belton 
Hearing Aid Co. 

. Renewal came from Philip Mor¬ 
ris for Marlboro Cigarets calling 
for more than 100 participations 
on the Paar show. 



23 


TELEVISION jgygfS 


, Ve(3imcjij ? October 1, 1953 


THE TEXAN 
With Imi Calhoun, Neyill* Brand, 

Exeeittre Producers: Calhoun? Vie 
Oriatk 

Fndicer. Jerry Staff 
Director: Jerry Thorpe 
SO Mias.; Mon^ * PJO, w „ 
BROWN A WILLIAMSON 
CBS-TY [film) 

(Ted Bates) 

CBS is fighting fire with fire in 
slotting this new western, series 
opposite NBC’s high-rated oater, 
‘‘Restless Gun.” Based on preem 
show <29) “The Texan” will have 
to put a lotjnore into the sc^pting 
department if it is to compete suc¬ 
cessfully in the race to the rating 
corral. 


Opener, “Law of the Gun’’ by 
Frank Moss from a story by Frank 
Gruber was slow -and contrived. 
Story dealt with a tall-in-the-saddle 
character (Calhoun) who responds 
to a friend’s (John Larch), plea 
for help after being jailed for al¬ 
legedly murdering the 14-year-old 
sister of a rival rancher (Neville 
Brand). Naturally Calhoun believes 
in his friend’s innocence and the 
rest of the'show is taken up with 
his various efforts to prove this 
and, of course, the heavy eventu¬ 
ally confesses to vindicate both the 
friend and the Texan who has be¬ 
come a very unpopular fellow 
around those parts. 

Calhoun in the title role came off 
a little too strong and silent for 
believability. His performance was 
stiff and how much of thi? can be 
blamed on the sparseness of the 
script is questionable. By contrast, 
Neville Brand turned in a fine bit 
of acting as the villainous rancher 
who belatedly confesses to the acci¬ 
dental shooting of his sister. Karl 
Swenson as the sheriff with a con¬ 
science but no guts gave the role 
a creditable ring. Other supporting 
roles were strictly routine. 


Producer Jerry Stagg and direc¬ 
tor Jerry Thorpe will need far 
better material to work with if “The 
Texan” is to stick around with some 
of its fast-moving, slickly-produced 
competitors. 

Commercials plugged .Viceroy 
and Kool -ciggies. Current Viceroy 
blurb anent the thinking man’s 
filter and smoking man’s taste 
seem pretty far afield for a west¬ 
ern viewer; however, they must be 
moving the goods. Syd. 


U.S. STEEL HOUR 
(Death Minus One) 

With Mer“Mundy, Alex Scourby, 

Beverly Lunsford, Carson 

Woods, Donald Moffat, Bryan 

Herbert _ 

Executive Producer: George Kon- 

dolf (for Theatre Guild)’ 
Director: Robert Stevens 
Writer: Arthur Hailey 
<0 Mins., Wed., 10 'pan. 

US. STEEL 

CBS-TY, from N.Y. ^ 

(BBDO) 

U.S. Steel ushered in its new 
season of alternate week hour live 
dramas last Wed. (24) with George 
Kohdolf assuming the exec pro¬ 
ducer reins for the Theatre Guild j 
and with an original teleplay by 
Arthur Hailey, who has estab¬ 
lished something of a rep for him¬ 
self as Canada’s answer to Alfred 
Hitchcock. Unfortunately it was 
anything but an auspicious kickoff. 

Hailey’s forte is suspense and 
tension, with a peculiar affinity for 
delayed time bombs. And so it was 
that “Death Minus One”, last 
week’s teeoff contribution, re¬ 
volved around one of the more 
Impressive V2 jobs all but ready 
to pop off—12 years later—in 
some war-devastated ruins ad¬ 
jacent to St. Paul's Cathedral in 
London. Seems a couple of kids 
accompanying their. Trenton, N.J., 
mother on a tour of the Cathedral, 
went Snooping in the ruins. Some 
of the structure collapses and the 
little girl is buried under the rub¬ 
ble. In the attempt to extricate 
her they come across the bomb 
which, in the ensuing disturbance, 
has been activated, and from then 
the mission is twofold—to save 
the girl and remove the bomb 
fuses. 

The melodramatics got lost In 
the dust, of which there was 
plenty. In fact it was a case of 
misplaced concentration, for there 
seemed less concern over the hu¬ 
man equation than in dramatizing 
flying beams and plaster. At one 
point it seemed like a herculean 
effort to budge one of the beams 
while 10 minutes later,, with the 
accent now on the bomb, the same 
beam is cast aside casually. 

As the pinned-in little girl Bev¬ 
erly Lunsford suggested a rumpled 
Alice In Rubbleland and tempoed 
her performance accordingly. Meg 
Mundy as the mother had little to 
do hut look distraught. Alex 
Scourby as the London bobby on the 
rescue scene appec"?d as though 
he wished he were somewhere else 
in some other costume. Rose, 


ED WYNN.fiHOW. - - 
With Jaeklyn CPDosuoll, 
AlherwL Herb Viera, 
Fax; then 

Producer: Baa Fetner Jr. 


Sharry 

Jeaalyn 


Writer: Devery Fnoui 
It Mias.; Thurs.,3 pjn. 
LIGGETT * MYERS . 

NBC-TV (film) 

(McCann-Erickson) 

This flew Screen Gems’ pic se¬ 
ries is a folksy situation comedy 
offering with Ed Wynn as the cen¬ 
tral character. A veteran perform¬ 
er who’s demonstrated a savvy ap¬ 
proach to dramatic roles in tv via 
one-shot appearances over the past 
few years, Wynn still needs mate¬ 
rial on which to work. On the 
kickoff stanza (25) he didn’t have 
much to go on. 

The preem’s story line was sen¬ 
timental and hokey while the'Scat¬ 
tered gags were stale and soggy. 
The yocks on the. soundtrack didn’t 
sound very convincing either. 
Wynn was cast as lively old widow¬ 
er who lives in a college town with 
his two granddaughters, moppet 
Sherry Alberoni- and teenager 
Jacklyn O’Donnell. On. the first 
show, Wynn becomes involved in 
a'fight with the local solons over 
an ordinance banning student 
boarders from residential homes. 
The story pursued its foregone 
conclusion without making a sin¬ 
gle surprise turn. . 

Wynn worked with an ingratiat¬ 
ing bounce that managed to give 
some vitality to the show. Herb 
Vigran, as the friendly lawyer, 
performed in broad style, hewing 
to the cliched pattern of his role. 
Others in the cast handled their 
assignments in acceptable fashion. 

Berm. 


THE GREAT GAME OF POLITICS 
(Profile of a Politician) 

With Eric Sevareid 
Producer: Bill Weinstein 
Director: Roger Englander 
Writer: Arthur Barron 
Researcher: Stanford Mirkin 
30 Mins.; Sun., 5 p.m. 

CBS-TV, from N. Y. 

As the first in a senes of seven 
shows on the structure of Ameri¬ 
can politics, CBS-TV Sunday (28) 
presented “Profile of a Politician,” 
an insight into the workings and 
the mind of Jack P. Russell, boss 
it Cleveland’s 16th ward and 
president of fhe Cleveland City 
Council. It was a disheartening 
glimpse, to say the least. 

It is-in public service programs 
such as this one that television 
fulfills one of its true and most 
/ital- functions, “Profile of a Politi¬ 
cian” was exceedingly well done, 
nostly because it let the subject 
speak for itself. As'a look at what 
ire the underpinnings of the 
American democratic-political sys- 
;em r it was both searching and 
Tightening, for it virtually proved 
iow a comparatively few men can 
lominate American politics* by dint 
>f .public apathy re politics on the 
ocal level. 


Director Roger Englander 
tackled his subject head-on,, and 
host Eric Sevareid made for the 
perfect commentator. The star of 
this show was .Russell, the politi¬ 
cian — hard-eyed, powerful, ruth¬ 
less, the type of man who thrives 
on democracy but .doesn’t necessar¬ 
ily practice it. He has created his 
little empire in Cleveland, and 
rules it with an iron fist, dispens¬ 
ing favors with one hand and using 
them as a blackjack with the other. 

“We get a man a job if he needs 
it,” said RusselL “If he forgets us 
in his political activity, we may 
take it hack again.” It’s as simple 
as that. The amazing part of the 
show was Russell’s willingness to 
reveal his strategy—the files kept 
in his office, the open threats to 
those who don’t fall in linq, the 
three businesses that thrive While 
' he collects only $7,000 on his poli- J 
tical job. “These are the realities 
of precinct and ward life,” said 
Sevareid, apparently quite-aware 
that his listeners would be ap¬ 
palled by the picture of Jack Rus¬ 
sell, politician, that emerged from 
the show. 

Filmed parts on tape, which con¬ 
stituted a good 75% of the pro¬ 
gram, were well integrated, though 
there was a-curious lapse in the 
editing since long scenes were re¬ 
peated in toto for no good reason. 
Arthur Barron’s script pulled the 
show together very well and kept 
that all-important distance which 
allowed the viewer to make up his 
own mind on the visual evidence 
presented. 

•The public has a tendency to be 
concerned mostly with national 
politics. The result, as this pro-' 
gram showed, has been the ^con¬ 
centration of power in the hands 
Of a few clever men who know 
how to give. and to take. In a 
sense, the profile of Jack Russell 
was a devastating one, because it 
proved how the processes' of de¬ 
mocracy cc.’i be corrupted in the 
r ~rr.o 0 f p-utic*. The onlv 
rr*n '•’■'ow was th*» '‘••'ck 
„©^Russell’s whip. Hip. 


THE BOB CUMMINGS SHOW 
With ku B. Darfe Rooemary Df 
Can* Dwayne. Rickman, Bar¬ 
bara Nichols, others^ 


Director: Bah Cnuiifi 
Writer*: Henninr, Dick Wesson, 

34 Mina.; Tnet., 3:34 pjn. 

R. J. REYNOLDS 
NBC-TV (film) 

( Willi am Esty) 

. Bob Cummings acts good, like a 
comedian should. Ditto the entire 
cast of the Winston-sponsored 
“Bob Cummings Show',” as it began 
its fifth season Tuesday (23) on 
NBC. 


The storyline, still about a girl- 
crazy .photographer, is utter trivia 
and generally deals out some of the 
oldest, must utterly mane situa¬ 
tions, but the zany acting makes 
It a lark. 

For the semester’s first stanza, 
producer Paul Henning and scribe 
Dick Wesson teamed to pen the 
tale of Schultzy’s departure for a 
missiles factory, where the male 
pickings are plush. Ann B. Davis, 
a convivial scarecrow, essays the 
photog’s secretary nicely. Although 
Barbara Nichols, enacting her re¬ 
placement at the photo studio, be¬ 
came too strident at times, her 
portrayal of a dumb blond was 
mainly satisfying. The running 
roles of Cummings’ on-stage sister 
and nephew, by Rosemary DeCamp 
and Dwayne Hickman, are most 
attractive. Art. 


MICKEY MOUSE CLUB 

With Jimmy Dodd, Mousketeers, 

others 

Producer: Bill Walsh 

30 Mins., Mon., Wed^ Fri., 5:30 

pan. 

PARTICIPATING 
ABC-TV (film) 

“Mickey Mouse Club” ha§ lost 
none of its impact since last sea¬ 
son, even though the current half- 
hour is merely a clever Tehash 
of the material the show 
used in three previous seme¬ 
sters. “MMC” is on Mondays, 
Wednesday and Fridays and car¬ 
ries the Mousketeers, the Mickey 
Mouse “Newsreels,” various va¬ 
riety artists (such as Harry Corbett, 
a talented pupetteer who appeared 
on. the first show), and old Disney 
cartoons. Tuesdays and Thurs¬ 
days, under the titlq of “Adventure 
Time,” are the collation of the 
previous quarter-hour serials Dis¬ 
ney used throughout the former 
regular- sked. 

On first show (29), editing was 
tight and the pace fast. As for 
the lack bf new material, there is 
an age of juveniles who, even after 
only three years, have never seen 
this stuff before. : This might not 
hold for “Adventure Time,” which 
had many 10-to-14 old juves in its 
audience; they are . old enough to 
remember. Art. 


THE LINEUP 

(‘The Samuel McCntcheon Case’) 
With Warner Anderson, Tom Tolly, 
Marshall Reed, Glen Kramer, 
Yvonne King, Harvey Stephens, 
Carol King, John Barclay 
Writer: Fred Eggers 
Exec Producer: Robert Sparks 
Producer: Jaime del Valle 
Director: Hollingsworth Morse 
30 Mins.; Fri., 10 pan. 

PROCTER & GAMBLE 
CBS-TV (film) 

(Young & Rubicam) 


If the viewer has seen one “Line¬ 
up” he’s seen ’em all. Ordinarily 
this would tend to discourage fu¬ 
ture tuning in but this cops ’n* 
robbers half-hour meller has a 
brisk format that can be relied 
upon to lure the attention of the 
action fan. Differing little from 
preceding episodes was the initial 
installment of the series’ fourth 
season Friday (26) bn CBS-TV. 

Here again Warner Anderson as 
LieHt. Ben Guthrie and Tom Tully 
as Inspector Matt Greb ferret out 
the wrongdoer against a back¬ 
ground of San Francisco land¬ 
marks. Season’s preem, authored 
By Fred- Eggers and directed by 
Hollingsworth Morse, had the sher- 
ldcks attempting to trace a. homi¬ 
cidal male who had a fancy for 
strangling women. Two corpses and 
some 26 minutes of footage later 
the crimes were duly solved. 


Such a story would have been 
a natural for. a .lurid, sexy treat¬ 
ment. But “The Lineup” doesn’t 
dig that approach, preferring to 
have’ the writer, cast and director 
play it straight with the accent on 
methodical gumshoeing. While 
there’s nothing glamorous about 
the way the yarn usually unreels, 
nevertheless there’s a steady, re¬ 
lentless tension inherent in the 
series that’s sufficient to keep 
action devotees interested. 

With boxing, “Adventures of Jim 
Bowie” and “Harbor Command” on 
rival nets, it appears that “The 
Lineup” has more-than a fair 
chance of snaring a reasonable'slice 
of the 10 p.m, audience. Picking 
up the tab this year is Procter & 
Gamble for Cheer- detergent and 
Ivory, soap. Filmed plugs are un- 


OCTOBER CLASSIC 
Wither alter (Red) Smith, Phil Rfa- 

gpte ...... 

Producer: Burto* Benjamin 
Writer: Earle Luby 
3# Mins.: Sunday CM), 1:30 p.m. 
PRUDENTIAL INSURANCE 
CBS-TV, from N.Y. 

(Reach, McClinton & Co.) 


As a prelude to the World Series 
which opens today (Wed.) in Mil¬ 
waukee, CBS-TV came up with this 
special pre-season edition of “The 
20th Century” series which is due 
to open formally' in a few weeks. 
For the fans, this show was right 
on the ball with - a rundown of ex¬ 
ceptional plays and events from 
past series encounters. 

Red Smith, N.Y. Herald Trib 
sports columnist, and Phil Rizzuto, 
ex-Yankee shortstop, opened and. 
closed the show with some base¬ 
ball chatter and predictions for 
' the upcoming meet between the 
Yankees and Braves. But the main 
basis of the show were film clips 
out of the archives, recreating 
such moments as Babe Ruth’s cal- | 
ling his home run blast against the i 
Chicago Cubs in 1932; the third 
strike miss by Dodger catcher 
Mickey Owens in 1939; Dodger A1 
Gionfriddo’s circus catch of Joe 
DiMaggio’s drive in 1947; Willie 
Mays’ sensational catch in.the 1954 
series with Cleveland; and the 1956 
"perfect game” hurling by the 
Yankees’ Don Larsen, among other 
highlights. 

While the quality of the film 
sequences was uneven, it was goop 
enough to catch the excitement of 
the. gamfe, Rizzuto furnished the 
baseball-wise commentary for the 
clips, avoiding for most part any 
unnecessary sensationalizing while 
occasionally adding some personal 
reminiscences. Herm. 


CHEYENNE 

With Ty Hardin, Claude Akins 
Dirk Bargot. Sue Randall, Hope 
Cabot,.Jack Elam, Robert War¬ 
wick, others 

Pioducer; Arthur W. Silver 
Director: Alan Crosland Jr. 

Writer: Alan Lipscott, Bob Fisher 
60 Mins., Tues., 7:30 pjn. 

JOHNSON & JOHNSON, NA¬ 
TIONAL CARBON CO. 

ABC-TV (film) 

(Y&R, Wm. Esty ) 

There’s a new face in the ol’ 
corral and, podners, he’s gonna be 
all right. -While the ol’ Bropco 
Layne, that was Clint Walker, is 
panning gold and letting “Chey¬ 
enne” shift-for itself, Ty Hardin, 
who used to buck the line for good 
ol’ Texas A & M, is now fighting 
off the varmints for good old WB. 
He may look boyish^ but don’t get 
’im riled. 

It m^y have been a tame start 
to get. “Cheyenne” away on its 1 
fourth ‘season, but the story by 
Alan. Lipscott and Bob Fisher 
didn’t call for much blood and 
thunder, what with Hardin leading 
a band of Quakers across the 
plains to California. It should be 
noted here that the writers have 
bepn in the comedy field almost ex¬ 
clusively and, as for Lipscott, he 
was writing gags long before Texas 
had a millionaire. They admirably 
resisted all temptation to slip in a' 
gag or two. Not a laugh in a Lip- 
scott-Fisher script? What’ll they 
tell the kids? 

For' this season’s getaway, the 
star carried more impact than the 
high-rated sagebrusher. What the 
viewers saw was a boyish-looking 
worthy, with the appearance of 
fuzz on his face rather than adult 
stubble. He was eased into his 
heroic role without the usual gun¬ 
play and dueling, - although there 
were some rascals around trying to 
protect a gold strike against the 
peaceful .migrants. Hardin kept 
| them at m safe distance while the 
Quakers pursued their prayerful 
journey, and one of the gals, a real 
looker named Sue Randall, took a 
fast shine to the new Bronc. • 

To whip up some excitement, 
producer Arthur Silver ordered a 
cloudburst during a prayer meet¬ 
ing and the thees and thous so in¬ 
spired one of the baddies that he 
shot down one of his own. Now 
that things were peaceful again, 
Hardin rode off leaving behind the. 
band of Quakers and a heart¬ 
broken lass. 

It was too early to tell how 
Hardin will react to the gunslingm.’ 
and rough-and-tumble ways of the 
Old West, hut there was plenty of 
evidence in his favor. He has the 
looks and build of a one-man law 
wave and knows how to time and 
punch a line. The heavies, Jack 
. Elam and Claude Akins, and Robert 
Warwick (remember?) as. head of 
the Quaker band, provided able 
seconding. Alan Crosland Jr., di¬ 
rection played on mood and charac¬ 
ter rather than explosive action. 
For want of a fourth sponsor, ABC 
used a spot-to plug “The Real 
Helm. 


PERSON TO PERSON 
With Edward B. Murrow, Jerry 
. Lewis, Comdr. William R. An- 
derm 

Producers: Jesse Zousmer, John 
, Aaron 

Directors: Robert Sammon, Robert 
Dailey, Charles N, Hill 
Editors: David Moore, Charles 
Bondne, Aaron Erlich, Lis 
Scofield 

34 Min*, Fri.; 14:30 pjn. 

P. LORILLARD, MAXWELL 
-HOUSE 

CBS-TV, from New York 

(Lennen & Newell ; Benton 
& Bowles) 

Sixth year opener of the Ed Mur- . 
row’s “Person to Person” was not, 
one of the choicer sessions, yet it 
well bespoke the sturdiness of the 
format, for all the mileage it has 
run up. Teeoffer was marred not 
so much by a couple miscues and 
a momentary audio failure as by 
Murrow’s obvious pique with them. 
The sound trouble occurred in one 
of “P to P’s” more ambitious un¬ 
dertakings, namely a remote from 
the good submarine Nautilus, 
which proved the more interesting 
of the two segments. 

'First encounter was with come¬ 
dian. Jerry Lewis at the 30-room 
second-hand home he purchased 
from the late Louis B. Mayer. 
Lewis squeezed in some funny busi¬ 
ness during the~usual tour of the 
premises, although some of it got 
squelched by Murrow’s readiness 
with the next question. Par for the 
course, Lewis’ wife and four sons 
got a look' into the cameras, and 
the comic got a chance to plug 
his muscular dystrophy work and 
show off the house’s pet gimmick, 
a ? convertible living room that 
makes like a Cinemascope theatre 
at virtually the push of a .button. 
Episode closed with hardly a 
fresh insight into Lewis’ personal 
life nor hardly a revelation of any 
unknown offstage dimension to his 
| character. 

The peg for the camera expedi¬ 
tion to the Nautilus was that it is 
the Navy home for Comdr. Wil¬ 
liam R. Anderson and his “family” 
of over 100 sailors: Tour of the 
ship to the quarters of work and 
relaxation was rewarding, and 
Murrow’s questions of the house¬ 
keeping and human interest sort 
—e.g. “How do the men keep from 
being bored during a solid month 
underseas?” and ‘*How do you 
empty the garbage?”—were well- 
picked and brought enlightening 
results. 

Comdr. Anderson gave-a frank 
answer to Murrow’s query of why 
he become a submariner, admit¬ 
ting it was because subs offer bet¬ 
ter opportunities for responsibility 
and advancement -He revealed he 
was soon being transferred from 
the sub to a Navy desk. 

Kent commercials, promised not 
to talk down to the audience and 
then promptly did. Les, 


THE CALIFORNIANS 
(Dishonor for Matt Wayne’) 

With Richard Coogan, Arthur 
Fleming, Carole Mathews, R. G, 
Armstrong, Hgrry Anterim, 
Douglas Dumbrille, Jan Shepard, 
Stacey Keach 
Writer: Carey Wilbur 
Producer-director: Felix Feist 
30 Ming., Tues., 10 pjn. 

SINGER, LIPTON (Alt.) 

NBC-TV (film) 

(Young & Rubicam) 

“The ‘ Californians” begins its 
new semester withe an actionful 
story, “Dishonor for Matt Wayne” 
in which the marshal of old San 
Francisco is framed on a murder 
rap after being accused of running 
a crooked gambling joint. Rich¬ 
ard Coogah is the harassed law¬ 
man-gambler, but in this yam ho 
receives a lot of help from a cou¬ 
ple of new characters introed into 
the series on .its opener. .They’re 
Arthur Fleming, as an attorney, 
and Carole Mathews, a gal who 
helps him run his games of for¬ 
tune. Both are highly “competent 
in their roles, and should add con¬ 
siderably to the show. 

The sin-merchants who rule 
Frisco don’t like tigs lawman aget- 
tin* in their way, so they plot a 
frame, whereby he’s fingered as 
having a crooked gambling hall. 
This works, and they follow it up 
with a neat murder frame, so the 
lawman finds himself in jail! A 
young attorney repping the heav¬ 
ies has a change of heart about the 
whole thing, and helps the mar¬ 
shall escape, in no time at all 
they pin the rap where it belongs, 
on 4he villains, However, the idea 
of a marshall also having a gam¬ 
bling house bothers the city fath¬ 
ers, and they solve all this by 
having the lawman turn title of 
his place* over to Miss Mathew?. 

. Richard Coogan turns in a good 
performance as the marshal, and 
receives fine assistance from Flem¬ 
ing, Miss Mathews, R. G. Arm¬ 
strong and Harry Anterim. Pro¬ 
ducer-director Felix Feist han¬ 
dles his dual chores well. Singer 
'Sewing and Lipton are the alter¬ 
nate bankrollers. Daku. 




29 


With Harrer Lembeck, Xllu Mel- 
rib, Maurice GMKdd, 

Jee £. Roes, Herbie F*je* BUIy 
Sends*. Mickey Freeman. Jack, 
Hfealy, Terry Carter, Maprloe 
Brenner* Berate Fein 
■ Producer: Edward J..Montague 
Director:' Aaron Ruben* AI De 
Caprio 

Writer*; . Billy . Fiiedberi’, Terry 

Ryan 

30 Mine.? Frl M 9 jun. 

SCHICK, R. J. REYNOLDS 
CBS-TV (film) 

(Benton & Bowles ; William Esty) 
If the show’s title did not serve 
as a constant reminder, it would. be 
easy to forget that Sgt. Bilko isn’t 
playing his improbable .self but that 
someone else quite long ago ‘em¬ 
bodied him for television. Phil Sii- 
. vers and Bilko are by now inter¬ 
changeable names for the same 
man, and. the fictional handle ap¬ 
pears to be -gaining ground. 

Which is to underscore the pleas¬ 
ant truth that there’s plenty of life 
in the old eon artist yet, as well 
as in. this outlandish saga of a< 
highly imaginary, but recognizable, 
peacetime army. Season’s inaug- 
user was a real rollicker, giving 
clear evidence that the Bilko show 
is going to he a tough baby to beat 
in its timeslot, provided-the writing 
bears up. 

Initialer found Bilko "buying an 
unopened crate for $25 at an army 
surplus auction in hopes it might 
contain some treasure. Turns out 
loaded with antique cavalry para¬ 
phernalia from a long-abandoned 
army post in California, but with it 
is a hand-sketched map which 
Bilko logically concludes points to 
hidden gold. 

His determination to get at the 
treasure inspires him to the follow¬ 
ing achievements: bulldozing a 
small town mayor-to convince him 
the N.Y. Yankees are moving to 
his burg; impersonating a World 
War I veteran to stir sentiment for 
the preservation of the old fort; 
maneuvering the U.S. Army into 
reopening the camp; and finally 
convincing his own colonel to vol¬ 
unteer for command. Nearly every¬ 
one in the platoon comes in for a 
brief bit along the'way to build 
the laugh quotient. 

Bflko’s treasure turns out to be 
fool’s gold, but Doberman saves 
the day by pointing out the near¬ 
ness -of Las Vegas, and everyone’s 
happy again. Not exactly a moral¬ 
ity play, but then it "wouldn’t be 
the army. 

Schick has hopped onto a good 
thing, and the blurbs* per usual, 
were integrated in a fun way. 

^ Les . 

CAPTAIN KANGAROO 
With Robert Keeshan 
Producer: Robert E. Claver' . 
Director: Peter Birch 
Writers: Bob Clarer, Bob Co^eary 
45 Mai; Mon^thru-FrL* 9 a.m. 
Participating 
CBS-TV, from N. Y. 

CBS-TV has come up with a 
winner in its 45-minute . early 
morning return of “Captain Kan¬ 
garoo.” Programmed. cross the 
board, the show will keep the kid- 
'dy-sei happy and the parents re¬ 
lieved for it’a wholesome enter¬ 
tainment for the moppets. 

Returning for the fourth season 
of the program is Bob Keeshan. 
He was the Clarabell of “Howdy 
Doody” and in other spheres as 
Tinker the Toymaker and Corny 
the Clown. Keeshan plays the role 
like he enjoyed doing It He’s sin¬ 
cere, amusing and has a pleasant 
voice. He roams the set petting the 
live and stuffed animals, gives out. 
stop, look 8c listen safety advice as 
well as hints on how to be nice to; 
mothers in general. All of this 
usually sounds corny but Keeshan, 
manages to put sincerity and feel¬ 
ing into his work. 

The first show-Caught featured 
film strips on Keeshan’s tour of 
London and in particular an inter¬ 
view with a small English boy who 
was returning home. The film clips 
were not outstanding but they 
served the purpose in getting over 
the travel idea to the moppets and 
that little boys and girls across the 
sea are not very much different. 

"Kangaroo” is a low budget: 
show but one high on production* 
values. Live chickens and a pony 
hold the interest of the children 
as well as puppets and toys In the: . 
“Treasure House,” Keeshan’s seU 
and playground. 

Most of the features that made 
"•Kangaroo” a hit in previous years 
are back again. Bunny Rabbitt, a 
puppet* does a bit from an opera; 
there were clever cartoons featur¬ 
ing "Tom Terrific,” a Terrytoon 
feature; and some chatter with 
“Mr. Greenjeans” in addition to 
Keeshan’s running through a read¬ 
ing period. 

The participating sponsors blend 
their blurbs well with animated 
sales messages done in good taste. 

Bern. 


With Carl Beta, Faul Peterson, 

^ Shelley Fabares; Jnek. Kelk* 
Howard WendeR* Alice Rein- 
baart, Lorise Lqtri*, Hugh C#r-j 
baran, others ' 

Producer; Tony Owed 
Director: Andrew McCullough 
Writer: Ffcfl LitHe 
M Mina* Wed., B P-»— 
CAMPBELL SOVF, SHULTON 
ABC-TV (film) 

(BBDtcO, W£8le0 
A pleasant family situation com¬ 
edy is offered in ^‘The Donna Reed 
Show,” which has the Wednesday 
at 9 p.m. spot on ABC-TV. 

Out of the Screen -Gems beltlin'e, 
it has a good plus in pert, likeable 
Miss Reed. She plays the role of 
the wife of a busy smalltown pedia¬ 
trician. Hgr family is Carl Betz as 
the doctor husband, Paul Peterson? 
as her young son, and Shelley 
Fabares as the teenage daughter. 
As penned by Phil Leslie, it was 
nice having the family in on the 
living room screen for a half-hour 
diversion. -- 

Initial episode was concerned 
with, various schemes to get the 
family away for-a weekend. The 
teleplay wasn’t a heavyweight in 
its -class, but scripter Leslie did 
offer some light, warm moments 
even in the stock setting. The 
characters registered well and fun 
flowed over - the half-hqur span. 
Leslie’s greatest weakness in the 
plot was his reliance on coinci¬ 
dence. Time and again It was used 
to keep the story , going. 

Carl Betz as the doctor husband 
was engaging. Paul Peterson as 
the precocious kid brother was 
winning, and Shelley Fabares, as 
the teenage sister, was just right. 
Director Andrew McCullough had 
the story moving at a neat clip 
and kept the laugh track subdued, 
which was a definite asset. Sup¬ 
porting cast was effective. 

Boro. 


THE FURTHER ADVENTURES 
OF ELLERY QUEEN 
With . George Nader, Vaughan 
Taylor, David Apotoshu, Andrew 
Duggan, Ralph Dundee, other* 
Exec producer: Albert McCleery 
Directors: Walter Graumau, Alan 
Cooke, Li via Granite, Alan Han¬ 
son, Lament Johnson 
Writer; Nicholas E. Baehr 
90 Mins., Fri v 8 p.m. 

RCA 

NBC-TV, from Hollywood (color) 

(Kenyon 8c Eckhardt) 
There’s undoubtedly a built-in 
audience for any series bearing the 
""Ellery Queen” tag but NBC-TV 
and helmsman Albert McCleery 
will have to do better than the 
opening show to hold on to it. 

Preem showed a lot of promise 
in many aspects but the ‘'Queen” 
contingent through the years has 
been built on solid “Whodunit” 
story line which was lacking in the 
opening stanza called “The Glass 
Town.” Series has recruited a 
flock of writers to contribute, sepa¬ 
rate episodes so each week really 
is another “opening” and perhaps 
the errors of the lead hour will be 
avoided in the followups. 

Major flaw id the kickoff show 
was that it wasn’t necessarily an 
“Ellery Queen” program. Plot line 
could have been flitted around any 
tv hero, especially of the western 
do-gooder genre. Tne slick sleuth-, 
mg that’s been a “Queen" trade¬ 
mark to the mystery novel addicts 
was sorely missing in the opening 
show. It was nothing more than a 
routine meller with sociological 
overtones that’s been done to death 
on tv’s dramatic shows over the 
years. 

Also George Nader* who plays 
the title role, is built along sage¬ 
brush hero lines which isn’t quite 
in keeping with the smooth* Urban 
quality that has made ‘‘Queen” a 
fiction standard. Nader, however, 
could possibly beat the rap as the 
series goes along because he’s got 
a 'good voice (and it was used a 
lot on opening show In narrative) 
and a strong, good-looking face. 
He’s building a new impression of 
“Queen” and it could work. 

The plusses as evidenced on the 
showcaser were in casting support¬ 
ing roles and camera work. The 
troupe was uniformly excellent 
and the leasing heightened the ac¬ 
tion. Show was caught in black- 
and-white and the pictures, espe¬ 
cially the closeups, provided plenty 
of impact. . 

Plot line of the initialer con¬ 
cerned itself with the murder of 
a Grandma Moses-type small/town- 
er and the attempts of the people 
in that town to make their own 
sort of justice. Bigotry and Intel-: 
erance were the real villains of the 
piece and the uncovering of the 
criminal was somewhat anti-cli¬ 
mactic, 

“Ellery Queen”, would be better 
off if he didn’t have to tope with 
that sort of egghead stuff. 

Grot. 


AftXIHiB fiOMUTABOt 
.With Jackie Cooper* Foggy King, 

The Arideatilg musical director. 

Berate Green; announcer* Teny 

Marvin* choreographer* Frank 

Weetfarock 

Producer: WQllam Hammerstein 
Director: Mel Ferber 
Writer: Larry Jffarites 
30 Mins.; Tues., 9 p.m. 

TONI* PHARMACEUTICALS (alt.) 
CBS-TV* from N.Y. 

(North; Parkson) 

Having dropped “Talent Scouts” 
and "Friends,” Arthur Godfrey now 
finds himself with a half-hour 
entry as his sole nighttime stint. 
Opener last Tuesday (23) emerged 
as “just another” variety show. 
The 'Godfrey name will .probably 
help sustain it over the long pull 
—such is fame—with not a single 
departure from the norm and even 
Godfrey himself subdued in the 
process. 

If the format can be pinned 
down, it probably had to do with 
sentimentality and nostalgia. The 
headman opened with a vocal of 
“Thank Heaven for Little Girls” 
amid the new craze of hula hoop-j 
ing, done by a bunch of juves. 
Guest Peggy King was In with an 
overly dramatic number. Jackie 
Cooper did a conversation piece 
with Godfrey that segued into a 
clip of Cooper’s 1930 “The Champ” 
bringer-outer via the walloping re¬ 
jection scene with Wallace Beery. 
After that. Cooper was seen wip- 
ping away a couple of tears. Then 
Cooper and Godfrey worked on 
“Last Night on the Back Porch” 
with some interpolated lyrics. The 
Axidentals (4) after a buildup by 
AG did an over-arranged “June Is 
Bustin’ Out All Over.” 

Miss King’s second number was 
more in her groove—“I’m Old- 
Fashioned.” (Why does she insist 
on occasional emoting with “‘busy” 
production when, with her bright 
goodlooks, the simple ones are best 
for her?). Godfrey's big try toward 
the finish mark was “September 
Song.” With his low-key approach, 
he got by. With Cooper on the 
drums and the other performers 
plying other instruments (Godfrey 
handling the uke, of course), the 
ficlile was a bit helter-skelter, 
lacking form. Nothing very excit¬ 
ing about the whole; an innocuous 
little thing, at best. 

, Godfrey, as per tradition, Is 
fronting the commercials. Since he 
has long been regarded as ode of 
the star salesmen of the industry, 
there’s nothing of the offbeat about 
such personal commerce. The 
same cannot be said of some other 
performers, notably actors, who 
are getting their feet wet as direct 
pitchmen, presumably in line with 
what it sez in the contract. 

Trau. 


YOU BET YOUR LIFE 
With Groucho Mux, George Fen-' 
neman. Jack MeakLn arch- 
Producer; John Gnedel 
Directors: Robert Dwan* Bernie 
Smith - 

30'Miiis.; Thnrs., 10 pjn, 

LEVER BROS., TONI 
NBC-TV (fttni) 

(BBD&0> North) 

Groucho Marx and John Guedel 
have made'a wise format change in 
incepting their 12th radio-tv sea¬ 
son of “You Bet Your Life.” 
They’ve cut the number of.con¬ 
testants so that only two couples 
appear instead of three, giving 
Groucho a greater opportunity to 
showcase the interesting and occa¬ 
sionally oddball guests, and of 
course to develop his own dialog 
and situations vis a' vis the con- : 
testants. Change is also suitable to 
the show’s new 10 p.m. time slot 
The change, worked excellently 
an the season’s opener, with 
Groucho concentrating in the first 
round on Eddie Gevirtz, an L.A. 
furrier, w.k. for his local tv com¬ 
mercials which he delivers himself, 
replete with an inimitable Brook¬ 
lyn accent and his own “intimate” 
style, Groucho went through all 
the paces and had a ball. 

Second team comprised a former 
Miss Finland and a Hungarian’ 
fencing master, and naturally, 
Groucho and the fencer staged a 
duel onstage. In the past few years. 
Groucho’s adeptnesS at physical- 
comedy has tended to be over¬ 
looked, but he proved himself a 
pretty fair slapstician as well^as 
with tiu*. hit If anything, Groucho 
had less bite in his quips this; 
outing, was a trifle less merci¬ 
less than usuaL But it didn’t mat¬ 
ter; as always, it was fun. 

The quiz aspect of the show has 
always been secondary, but as per 
usual, it ran off neatly and quickly. 
George Fenneman continues to be 
an able backstop for Marx,, and 
directors Robert Dwan and Bernie 
Smith'click the show off in well¬ 
paced fashion. Quality of the Film- ; 
craft production is good. Chan, 


WitkPatti Fate, Writer FUgeoa, 

Mateo Hayden, Matt Mattes* 

Reeky Cole . 

FMnoer: Ted MRU.. 4 
Amoc. Producer: Geetge Charles 
Director; David Geteel - * 

Writer: Sheldon Keller 
3t Mkmj Wed., 9:39 PJM. 
jOLDSMOBILE 
ABC-TV, from New York 
U>. P. Brother) 

After a run with the ill-fated 
“Big Record” show over CBS-TV 
last season, Patti Page has been 
placed in more comfortable sur¬ 
roundings by ABC-TV and the 
Oldsmobile people. It’s a pleasant 
little variety musicale that plays 
up Miss Page’s homespun personal¬ 
ity and pop pipes in a way that 
adds up to a diverting half-hour 
that will keep the thrush’s fans 
happy. 

There’s a smoothness and easy¬ 
going quality to the show, as evi¬ 
denced on the preem stanza last 
Wednesday (24), that shows pro¬ 
duction and performance care. For 
the opener Miss Page worked 
neatly through “Let There Be 
Loye,” “Summertime,” “If Dreams 
Came True,” “The Way You Look 
Tonight,” “Fibbin* ” and “Left 
Right Out of Your Heart.” A vocal 
chorus gave a pretentious air to 
some of the offerings but when 
she worked with a keyboard assist 
from Rocky Cole the songbag had 
lots of body! .- 

Walter Pidgeon, the initial 
guester, was spotted in a produc¬ 
tion-reading sequence mouthing 
lines by Wordsworth and Shake¬ 
speare while Melissa Hayden, Matt 
Mattox supplied a ballet picture. 
It may not have been the right 
fodder for Miss Page’s pop fans 
but it did show some thought and 
originality on the parts of producer 
Ted Mills and director David Gei- 
sel. However, the bulk of show is 
on . the thrush’s back and this time 
it looks like she can pull it through. 

The commercial spiels are set 
up in such a way that the sponsor 
identification between “Patti and 
Olds” may eventually become as 
strong as that of “Dinah (Shore) 
and Chewy.” And that’s what 
Detroit seems to want. Grot. 


THIS IS YOUR LIFE 
With Ralph Edwards, host 
Producer: Axel Graettberff 
Director: Dick Gottlieb 
Continuity Editors: Faul Phillips, 

Mort Lewis 

39 Mins., Wed.; 10 pjn. 

PROCTER A: GAMBLE 
NBC-TV, from Hollywood 

(Benton A Bowles) 

Ralph Edwards, whose "This Is 
Your Life” first began poking Into 
people’s private Jives - on NBC 
Radio back in 1948, started its 
seventh video' season Wednesday 
(24) via NBC-TV. While six years 
on the visual medium is a 
long time to be shoveling out hu¬ 
man interest, it’s apparent that 
this formula must be a sound one 
else these half-hour “living biog¬ 
raphies” would have faded like 
the end of a rainbow many moons 
ago. 

Subject for .the season’s initialer 
was Steve Allen. Those viewers 
who revel in harmless sentiment 
of bygone years no doubt enjoyed 
the Allen chronicle replete with 
snapshots from the family album 
plus appearances of friends and 
members of his. family. On hand, 
among others, was the comedian’s 
mother. Belle Montrose Allen who 
once trouped in vaude with her 
late Ttasband. 

Mrs. Allen’s yesteryear rem¬ 
iniscences lent a nostalgic touch 
as did recollections of her son’s 
Chicago highschool teacher and 
those of actor Richard Kiley who 
was a teenage associate. Through¬ 
out the proceedings, as per usual, 
Edwards busily flitted about inter¬ 
viewing the subject’s friends and 
relatives and ultimately all the 
pieces in the^llen ladder to fame 
were duly fitted together. 

Fortunately, for both Allen and 
the less vicariously inclined view¬ 
er the sketch of his career wasn’t 
overly sentimental. But host Ed¬ 
wards, a high priest of the heart- 
tug and moist handkerchief, 
couldn’t let the show go by with¬ 
out the lachrymose effort. This 
was the appearance of a Vietnam¬ 
ese boy “adopted” by Allen under 
the Foster Parents Plan. On a 
happier note was toe presence of 
toe comedian’s wife, Jayne Mea¬ 
dows, and his three sons by an 
earlier marriage. 

. Again sponsor this season is 
Procter 8c Gamble on behalf of a 
variety of products ranging from: 
Prell shampoo to Gleem tooth¬ 
paste. While the Allen “command 
performance” was only mildly eye- 
dampening as already noted, next 
week’s appearance of baseball star 
Boy Campanella should have all 
the “Life” regulars reaching for 
toe Kleenex. - Gilb. 


PLAYHOUSE 99 
(TbeBlot to Kill Stafln) 

With Melvyn Donates, Eli Wallaclt, 
Oaear Homolka, E. G. Marshall, 
Thomas Gomez, Luther Adler, 
others 

Producer: Fred Coe 
Director: Delbert Mann 
Writer; David Karp 
9Q Mins.; Thnrs., 9:39 PJn. 
AMERICAN GAS* KIMBERLY* 
CLARK* ALLSTATE INSUR¬ 
ANCE 

CBS-TV, from Hollywood 

(Lennen & Newell, FC&B, 

Leo Burnett ) 

As live tv programming goes, 
“Playhouse 90,” toe hour and a 
half CBS-TV Thursday night entry, 
is still endowed with that .creme 
de la creme look, which r spells 
class. It doesn't necessarily follow 
(although it helps) that the opening 
attraction will be of smash pro¬ 
portions. Last Thursday’s "‘The 
Plot to Kill Stalin” for example, 
was hardly that. But like “Requiem 
for a Heavyweight” of two years 
ago, it could be the second time 
out, or even toe third. Sooner or 
later and spread out intermittently 
over the season, the real thing 
comes along to vest the medium 
with stature. 

This is the third season round for 
"Playhouse 90” and, based on past 
performance plus this season's pro¬ 
duction revamping, new refine¬ 
ments and property-talent acquisi¬ 
tions, there is every reason to as¬ 
sume that the 90-minute showcase 
will again do toe medium proud. 
A Herbert Brodkin-Fred Coe-John 
Houseman - Arthur Penn - Gordon 
Duff production 1 marquee (not to 
mention a directorial swing shift 
comprising such stalwarts as Vin¬ 
cent J. Donohue, John Franken- 
heimer, George Roy Hill, Delbert 
Mann, Robert Mulligan, George 
Schaefer) by any law of averages 
must invite some 10 feet tall prod¬ 
uct. One miss doesn’t erase such 
lofty intent and ambition. Such 
are the painstaking auspices under 
which “Playhouse 90” returns for 
toe new season. 

If David Karp’s "Plot to Kill 
Stalin” wasn’t precisely a master¬ 
piece, the Fred Coe-Delbert Mann 
teamup and its casting of Melvyn 
Douglas, Eli Wallach, Oscar Ho¬ 
molka, E. G. Marshal], Thomas 
Go)oaez and Luther Adler alone 
merited a tune in. That kind of 
dramatis personnae, on or off tv, 
is hard to come by these days. 
Based on hindsight and sup- 

8 osedly authenticated documenta- 
on (toe N.Y. Times' Harrison 
Salisbury was brought in as techni¬ 
cal adviser). Karp’s play of the con¬ 
spiracy and counter-conspiracy be¬ 
hind the Kremlin walls from the 
Nov. ’52 hatching of the plot to 
kill Stalin until his death in March 
'53 was not without interest-But 
if toe play as a whole failed to 
create mounting tensions it was 
due to the johnny-one-note plateau 
on which it was performed. Here 
and there, in the unfolding of the 
fears, suspicions, hatred and talks 
of violence that permeated toe 
plot, there was a need for some 
climactic touches to stir toe 
viewer and heighten the tensions. 
Instead it played itself out obedi¬ 
ently, on cue, with seldom if ever 
a slipup. Douglas more often than 
not met the physical exactitudes 
and requirements of toe pipe-smok¬ 
ing Stalin; Oscar Homolka very 
often approximated the vodka-im¬ 
bibing Khrushchev with what we’ve 
been led to accept as a strange 
admixture of buffoonery and sin¬ 
ister cunning (in one scene Stalin 
holds him up to ridicule in forcing 
him to do a dance), then suddenly 
reverted back to being Homolka; 
Luther Adler gave a realistic por¬ 
trayal of the fear-ridden Molotov; 
Thomas Gomez fitted snugly into 
the Malenkov part; Eli Wallach 
made a believable Poskrebyshev, 
Stalin’s ever faithful hatchet man* 
doomed to oblivion after Stalin’* 
death. It was a field day for the 
makeup artist, who probably rates 
equal billing with the others, for 
there’s no doubt that toe “how did 
they look” aspect of the produc¬ 
tion vied with the script itself (and 
sometimes overshadowed it) In 
commanding toe attention of toe 
viewer. 

In Karp’s hook (from his five 
years later vantage point) every¬ 
body without exception comes out 
a villain and a potential murderer. 
He follows Stalin from hi* initial 
apprehensions and fears {‘Tm sur¬ 
rounded by wolves”); bli decision 
to wipe out the old Politburo, 
with (Molotov, Beria, Malenkov* 
Khrushchev, etc.) as marked men. 
He dictates the purge of Jewish 
doctors on a trumped up charge to 
pave toe way for the liquidation 
of Beria. Then toe sinister whis¬ 
perings and plottings of Malenkev, 
Beria, Molotov and Khrushchev, one 
played against toe other, and 
finally Stalin confronting the plot¬ 
ters with toe culminating heart 
attack, Khrushchev is portrayed a* 
toe arch villain of them all 
As a footnote to history, it wa* 
worth the try. But as tv drama¬ 
turgy it lacked an excitement 

Rose. 





M ,. ... . f'JfitlEff .. .. W«*M^,y,OctohCT I, 19M 

Foreign Television Reviews 

♦ M * ♦ »♦ ♦ ♦ . ♦ ♦ ♦ » 4 i M 4 ♦♦♦ 44*4444444+»»4444 . 444 4 » M ♦ ♦ ♦44 44 444444444444 4 4444 4444 4 444444444444 44 44 44444 ♦ . ♦♦♦ • 


WOMEN IN LOVE _ , 

With George Swden, Scilla 6*bcl, 
Frances Martin, Annette Oran* 
Ann-Marie GyUenspeta, Maria 
Jesns Cuadra, Yvonne .Monlaur, 
Terence Morfu, Joto Fra*® r »- 
Moray Wataen, Robert iUetty, 
Sean Connery, Daniel Massey, 
Josephine Martin, Frederick 
Sehreeksr, Ralph Michael, Gra¬ 
ham Crovden, Donald Morley, 
Leal Douglas, George Bishop, 
Caspar Wrede, Minnie Saenger, 
Steve Flytas, Peter Wekh, Roger 
Delgado, Henry Kendall, Andre 
MaranneTGny Deghy 
Frodneer: Peter Graham Scott 
Directors: Jnliam Amyes, Tania 
LieTen: Robert Tronson, Peter 
Graham Scott, Joan Kemp- 
WelCh, Ronald Marriott 
Writers: Bridget BalMnd,T^nv 
Guard, Michael Ashe, Michael 
Meyer, Robert Rietty, Charles 
Terrot 

12# Mina* Wed,, 8 pjn. 
Aasociated-Rediflnsion, front Lon- 


To celebrate its third anniver¬ 
sary and to inaugurate the fourth, 
year of commercial tv, Associated- 
Rediffusion stepped up its budget 
to present six playlets with a com¬ 
mon theme over a two-hour period. 
What was undoubtedly intended 
to .be a spectacular birthday pro¬ 
gram turned out to be nothing 
more than a long drawn-out and 
rather trivial collection of indiffer¬ 
ent stories. 

The program had had an excep¬ 
tional and expensive buildup. A-R 
scouted the continent for six girls 
to star in each of the plays and to 
bring - them to London for re¬ 
hearsals and production the com¬ 
pany chartered c an aircraft -and 
took out a party of newsmen.to 
meet them in Pans. The publicity, 
was more impressive than the fin¬ 
ished product 

Although his name would prob¬ 
ably appeal to the majority of 
British viewers, George Sanders 
made a negative contribution in 
his role as introducer of the plays. 
His “worldly-wise” comments on 
the subjects of women and love 
included almost every cliche in the 
book. He was a little too suave in 
manner and at no time has any¬ 
thing of importance or interest- to 
add to the subjects he was intrDe¬ 
ducing. 

The six plays were set in differ¬ 
ent parts of Europe, but, surpris¬ 
ingly, Great Britain itself was ex¬ 
cluded. The first, “After So Long,” 
introduced Scilla Gabel from Italy 
and had Rome as' its background. 
Terence Morgan appeared as a 
businessman who returned, to the 
capital after a five year absence to 
resume his association with a mar¬ 
ried woman. In the interim she 
had a couple of children, blit had 
omitted to mention this fact in 
her regular letters to him. Bridget 
Boland, a highly competent writer, 
has done much better than this 
novelettish stuff. 

“Willi,” by Philip Guard, had 
the Austrian Tyrol as its setting 
and told a rather pointless story 
about a British tourist who got 
trapped in the mountains by. a wily, 
hut attractive, girl. Frances Mar¬ 
tin, imported from Austria, played 
the lead in rather coy fashion. ] 

Of the six Subjects “The Return” : 
was the only one with a theme 
bearing on reality. Annette Grau, 
from Germany, murdered the man 
who had been her wartime lover, 
after bribing a key witness to get 
his acquittal.in a war crimes trial. 
The man she killed had been re¬ 
sponsible for her father’s death in 
a concentration camp. 

The oddest entry was “Song 
Without Words,” aimed to prove, 
presumably, that love can triumph 
over the language barrier. The 
principal characters were played 
by John Fraser, as a British tour¬ 
ist, and Ann-Marie Gyllenspetz, a 
local girl, who met on a* pleasure 
boat in Stockholm. She didn’t 
speak a word of English and they- 
had to rely on natural means of 
communication. Anyway, it didn’t 
place much of a strain on the dia¬ 
log writer. 

“A Candle For the Madonna” 
was a typical paper-back type 
Story in which a slut of a girl was 
helped by a blind guitarist. They 
go off together hut the girl was 
never able to get away from her 
past. Maria Jesus Cuadra was the 
import from Spain. 

Finally, “The Stowaway,” which 
featured Yvonne Monlaur from 
France with Daniel Massey, was a 
rather tame effort about a ship¬ 
board romance. The girl Shewed 
a good provocative personality. ! 
George Melachrino’s conceit or-J 


chestrk backed the entire two-hour 
bill. At times, particularly, fn the 
earlier stages, the background mu¬ 
sic was. overpowering and almost 
drowned some of the dialog. Nor¬ 
man Hartnell did quite a job with 
some of his creations. Myra. 


LIFE WITH THE LYONS _ 
With Bebe Daniels, Ben Lyon, 
Barbara Lyon, Richard Lyon, 
others 

Writers: Bebe Daniels, Bob Ross 
and Bqb Lock 
Director: John Phillips 
3# mins., Fri, C:ll pan. 
Assoelated-Redlffasion, train Lon¬ 
don 

The Lyon family is back In an¬ 
ther domestic comedy series' which 
will be aired every other week by 
Associated-Rediffusion. The v first 
series, screened a few months 
back as a followup of a radio show 
featuring the Lyons, maintained a 
favorable audience reaction 
throughout its run and there’s 
little reason why the current skein 
should not repeat the previous 
success. It is neatly produced, and 
the action suits'the zany antics of 
the family. . ‘ . 

On its.* first outing the show 
earned yocks 'with a script about 
a crazy livestock mixup. ’Ben 
Lyon had a yen to keep chickens 
but at a' cattle market Bebe Dan¬ 
iels unwittingly -bid for ;a prize 
cow. Ensuing action had the fam¬ 
ily keeping the steer a secret from 
Ben by hiding it around the house. 

Bary. 


CHELSEA AT NINE 
With Maria Meneg hini Callas, Do* 
Adams, Jacques - Chasot and; 
Rene Boa, Digby Wolfe, Chris . 
Barber’s Jan Band with Ottilie- 
Patterson, Lionel Mnrton, Peter. 
Knight’s oreh.the Granadiers 
Producer: Wendy_Toye 
Director: Silvio Nariman* 

## mins.. Toes., 9 jun. - 
Gnuuds-TV from Xondoa 

Gkanada-TV led" Into a new se¬ 
ries of “Chelsea At Nine,” its high- 
class variety- shew, with a-strong 
and well balanced lineup that got 
the offering--Off-to a worthy jstart. 
Show regularly boasted an out-of- 
the-rut hill when it was.last in 
the schedules, though was seldom 
listed in the network ratings, .but 
oh* its first showing In- the latest 
skein, it certainly, merits.a placing. 

Heading.the bill .was top opera 
star Maria Calais, who was in ma’g-. 
nificent form singing;in two Yrlas, 
“Casta; Diva,” from “Norma,”, and 
“One Fine Day,” from “Madam 
Butterfly.”.. Miss. Callas demon¬ 
strated' her sparkling-' personality; 
and was a fine show topper. 

Making . his .British tv - debut, 
Yank comic Don. Adams, scored- a 
big hit for -himself with a good, 
delivery; warm, approach .and nice' 
material. .His throwaway gags 
brought'some'hefty yocks and his 
observation; humor earned him -a 
stout sendoff. ' Another '- comedy 
act, this time based- on ballet,, 
came via Jacques Chazot and Rene 
Bon, who were in fine form with 
a Black Swan routine. Chazot, as 
the ballerina, aided by Bon, pro¬ 
vided a lot of. fun-and some‘fine 
dancing. The third comedy entry 
was supplied by British comic 
Digby Wolfe, who had some seam¬ 
ing material based- on a Hake-off 
of a BBC-TV program ‘‘Does Class 
Really Matter?” - He made the 
most of his spot. 

The Chiis Barber Jazz in Bri¬ 
tain, made a rousing act with a 
couple * of renderings—“Muskat 
Ramble,” and “Maryland,” while 
the band’s songstress Ottilie Pat¬ 
terson vocalized strongly on “Salty 
Dog.” Show was emceed fluently 
and capably by Lionel MuTton, 
while the resident song and dance 
line, the Granadiers were good in 
a couple of spots. - Musical accom¬ 
paniments from the Peter Knight 
orch were first class. Bary. 


TAKE YOIJR PICK 
With Michael Miles, others 
Director: Audrey Starrett 
Producer: Arlington Television 
and Radio Ltd, 

30 mins., FrL, 8 p.m. 
Associated-Rediffusion, from Lon¬ 
don. 

“Take Your Pick,” back-again 
in a .peak Friday night viewing 
slot, was the most .popular quiz 
show.aired by British commercial 
tv before it was rested during the 
summer months, and on several 
occasions headed the network Top 
10 ratings. It is by no means a 
show for the eggheads but sets’ out 
and succeeds to attract the aver¬ 
age family audience with ' broad 
humor, simple questions and a 
wide variety of useful prizes. Resi¬ 
dent question master Michael 


Miles is a fast talker and has es¬ 
tablished a slick style fQr conduct¬ 
ing the offering. Program is pre¬ 
filmed. 

Contestants go through' a series 
of obstacles before getting a stalrl 
at the prizes^ There are forfeits 
to pay, a 6CPseconds spot where 
the player must answer questions 
without the u s6 of the words “yes” 
or “no,” and finally three ques¬ 
tions which lead up to the prizes. 
Then Miles turns on. the heat with 
some snappy cash Lidding for the 
keys to the boxes selected by the 
players—seven of which, have gen¬ 
uine prizes and three duds. . 

' Bary. 


DOUBLE . YOUR MONEY 
With Hughie Green, others 
Producer: Erie J. Croall ' 

Director: BUI Turner 
30 Mias., Thurs., 8:30 pm. 
AsMeiated-Etdiffusfon, from Lon¬ 
don 

One of British commercial tv’s 
most popular quiz'games, “Double 
Your Money” has returned In its 
fourth series. Ohe of Its major at¬ 
tractions is quizmaster Hughie 
Green who Is probably more of-a 
viewer, draw than the game itself. 
He puts the accent on comedy and 
neatly ‘makes contestants feel at 
ease. Show is -pre-filmed and the ; 
offering runs along at a racy pace. 
Top prize to be won is worth only 
$90, hut -there’s also a. treasure 
trail worth $2,800 if a competitor 
wins, the $90 and gets a test ques¬ 
tion right. 

'- lii> the' opening show of the new 
series prize money won amounted 
to only $14 shared between two 
players, .one of wfaojh was; Ben 
Lyon and did the spot for laughs. 
Two : other contestants ' were 
knocked off .when going for the 
uppper bracket prizes. Bary: - 

NIGHTCAP i 

with The Stargasers, Berate Fen¬ 
ton Quintet “ 

Producer: • Peter Glover. 

2# Mins: Sun., lltl# p.m. 
Associated Television, from Lon-; 

don ! 

A lively yet relaxing 20 minutes, 
of songs from a stylish, popular 
group (four men and a girl), which 
is skedded for six weeks and makes 
ideal late-- viewing for .Sunday 
nights. Slickly produced by Peter 
Glover, .potpourri of song has. 
warmth 'and speed ’and the Star¬ 
gazers do a standout job.* 

The combo opened with a brisk 
medley of 11 songs including 
“Room With a.View,” .“Love is the 
Sweetest Thing,” "You Are My 
Lucky Star,” “Miss Qtis Regrets,” 
“Mountain -Greenery,” “Who Can 
Ask for Anything More” and other 
nostalgic items. This was followed 
by a new * number, “Moon- Talk,” 
and t.hen a selection of Judy Gar- 
lahd songsj “Just 'Wild 'About 
Harry,” “For Me - and My Gal,” 
“CoupJa Swell s,” “Somewhere 
Over the Rainbow.”:, and “Trolley 
Song.” In this-interlude the femme 
member of the Stargazers gave 4 
swell imitation of Miss Garland. 
The act was rouhded off with “It’s 
Dreamtime.” 

The. singing owes, much to the 
informal setting, with one of the 
members' at the. piano and the 
others drifting : around the lounge 
as if they were simply winding up 
a cheerful evening at home. Ber- 
nie Fenton’s Quintet gave polished 
hacking. Rich. 

MARY BRITTEN MD 

With Brenda Bruce, Ronald How- 

. ard, others 

Writer: Peter Key- 

Producer: Hugh Munrd 

30 Mins., Sat., 6:30 pm. 

Southern Television from South¬ 
ampton 

Southern Television’s first regu¬ 
lar contribution to the network, 
“Mary Britten MD,”. has the mak- 
ins of a good weekly human dom¬ 
estic series. The two central 
characters, around whom the . plot 
is built, • are amiably played by 
Brenda Bruce and Ronald Howard, 
as a professional couple settling in 
a new town in the South of Eng¬ 
land. He’s taking up the post of 
head teacher at a new progressive 
school, and she, although a quali¬ 
fied doctor, is looking-forward to 
becoming a plain housewife. Hugh 
Munro’s production establishes the 
right atmosphere in . which it is 
easy to accept events, and sets by 
Reece Pemberton are* realistic. 
There’s also the added attraction 
of location shots of the rolling 
south of England countryside. 

Opening episode dealt with the 
settling in of the couple at Faf- 
rant, their new home town. They 
encountered roms initial frigidity 
from the locals and were let down 
by the owner of the house, the£ 


were to rent. Finally they got an 
apartment in a doctor’s house and 
Miss Bruce % was sent, hack ttr her 
profession (against her better judg¬ 
ment) when a small boy was in¬ 
jured outside the house. Series 
looks set to catch a large regular 
following and become a stout 
episoder. • Bary. 

WILLIAM TELL 

With Conrad Phillips, Jennifer 
Jayne, Richard Rogers, Wil¬ 
loughby Goddard, Peters Ham¬ 
mond, Roy Purcell, James Booth, 
Celia Hewitt, ethers 
Writer: Ralph Smart 
Producer: Ralph Smart 
Director: Peter Maxwell • 

TV Adaptation: Doreen Montgom¬ 
ery 

3# Mins., Sat, 5:1# pm. 

Associated Television from Lon-j 
don 

Co-produced by National Tele¬ 
film -Associates and incorporated 
Television Program Co„ the vidpix j 
version of “William Tell” has 
made its bow on British eommer-' 
cial tv. It .proves to be a tepid 
meller skein set in Switzerland.; 
with a familiar storyline which; 
should make it suitable as an aver¬ 
age entry for the juve trade. 

Cast, headed by Conrad Phillips 
in the title role, makes a moderate 
job of a script which never reaches 
any great heights. The writing is 
often trite and the situations easily 
predictable, while the players lack 
enthusiasm. Performances are gen¬ 
erally stereotyped, with Phillips 
cast as a dashing saviour of the 
Swiss peasants who depends on his 
dead-eye with a crossbow and su- 
i perhuman quick thinking to outwit 
the local arch villain. The tyrant, 

1 played by Willoughby Goddard, is 
an outsize suppressor of the peo¬ 
ple, who spends his time thinking 
of ways to capture the hero of the 
piece. Jennifer Jayne and Richard 
Rogers figure yagiiely in the story 
as Tell’s wife and son. Production, 
despite the panoramic beauty, of 
the Swiss lakes, is ohyious and 
heavy-handed and lacks color. 

Entry caught put the focus on 
the villain' who, in a bid to cap¬ 
ture Tell, nabbed six of the hero s 
I villagers as hostages. Tell saved 
the.day by outwitting.the entire 
army. Bary. 

itcanhappen tomorrow 

With Percy Cudlipp, others 
Producer: John Irwin 
Director: Jock Watson 
15 mins,, Sun., 5 p.m. 

Associated ' Television, from Lon¬ 
don 

Designed for an audience be¬ 
tween the age group of 13 to 21, 
this show should also appeal to the 
older members of the co mm u ni ty, 
especially so since its theme is sci¬ 
ence. Show, so the programmers 
state, sets out to bridge the gap 
between modern scientists and to¬ 
day’s young people. It is intro¬ 
duced by wJc. journalist Percy 
Cudlipp, editor of the New Sci¬ 
entist, who, though he displayed a 
lack of humor In the show under 
review, gets straight down to hard 
facts. 

The question posed In Cudlipp 
was which should be given prefer¬ 
ence: medical research or more 
knowledge about the .depths of the 
sea? Though he was assisted by 
Dr. Robert Dietz of the U. S. Navy, 
who talked about the unknown 
deeps and showed some interesting 
-film , -Cudlipp did not draw any 
conclusive arguments hut perhaps 
that will be done in ensuing pro¬ 
grams. .Nevertheless, the show has- 
a wide field of interest upon which 
to draw. Bary. 


THE ARMY GAME- 
With Michael Medwiu, Alfle Baas, 
Bill Fraser, Norman Roasington, 
Ted Lime, C. B. Poultney, ethers 
Director! Milo Lewis 
30 mins., Fri. 8;3# pja. 
Granada-TY, from Manchester 
The return of this show to the 
schedules has led to much specular 
tion as to how it would come over 
minus its star attraction, Bernard 
Bresslaw. Through his role in 
past series as a. dumb, gangling 
soldier, Bresslaw played a big part 
in putting the offering in the 
Top 10 network ratings .end be¬ 
came-almost a national figure. The 
web has.- however, replaced him 
with Ted Lune, a comedian who 
looks like a hairpin, has an off¬ 
beat style of . comedy, and looks a 
fair bet to step in where Bresslaw 
Heft off. 

The show is based on the ex¬ 
ploits of Y gang of British soldiers 
who ere constantly thinking up 
new ways of making ..a fast buck 
and outwitting their, sergeant. 
Script makes fun of army life and 
is essentially British in its humor 
content. There are a lot of au¬ 
thentic touches of service life and 
the opening offering introduced 
the-new lineup which comprised 
an eccentric major; a top sergeant 
with a. mein, streak; a scheming 
corporal, and three privates.- 

Bary. 


NEW HORIZON 
With Dr. J. BronowH, others 
Prod.-Dir.: Geoffrey Hughes 
Script Editors: Hugh Pitt, Stanley 

Craig 

30 Mins.; Tues., 10:15 pm. 
Associated-Rediffusion from Lon- 
- don 

One of Britain’s top tv star scien¬ 
tists, Dr. J, Bronowski has, in past 
series for Associated-Rediffusion, 
probably done more to explain the 
wonders of. science to the layman 
than anyone else. Back again with 
a . new skein, this • likeable man-is 
assured of a sizeable audience. 
Production Is maintained at a high 
level and good use is made of 
cameras. 

Bronowski opened his new series 
with a show subtitled “Seeing Is 
Believing ” in which, with the -aid 
of several experiments, including 
a number of optical illusions, he 
demonstrated how the brain dic¬ 
tated what the eye saw. Vision, he 
explained,-was a matter of condi¬ 
tioning. The scientist conveyed his 
explanations, in a good intimate 

-»•*.. .,-v 


MUSIC SHOP 

With Teddy Johnson, Jill Day, Tko 
Polka Dots, Eddie Thompson, 
Sheila Rose, Jack Parnell’s orch. 
Producer: Dicky Leeman 
25 mins., Son., 2:5# pm. 

Associated Television from Lon¬ 
don 

: As its title implies, “Music Box’* 
concerns itself mainly with music. 
It’s pleasant Sunday afternoon 
fare .which brings a number of 
guest artists before the. cameras' 
to have a word with emcee Teddy 
Johnson and then do their stuff. 
Johnson,- himself a songster, has 
a mellow personality and is well 
suited to the show. Both produc¬ 
tion and decor are simple but ade¬ 
quate and the program entertains. 

This first offering had a well 
balanced lineup headed by lush 
songstress Jill Day who gave out 
with a zippy version of ‘T Won’t 
Dance.” Completing the layout 
were' blind pianist Eddie Thomp¬ 
son who played gdod jazz with his 
interpretation of “Can’t Get . 
Started,”; The Polka Dots, one of - 
the most progressive male vocal 
quartets In Britain; 15-years-old 
songstress Sheila Rose, who 
showed remarkable rfthge and 
tonal qualities in “I Could Have 
Danced All Night”; and.a combo 
supplied by Jack ’ Parnell which 
made sweet music. Bary. 


THE] JACK JACKSON SHOW * 
With. .Glen Mason, Malcolm Jack- 

son, Bernard Landy, Barbara _ 

Windsor, others. 

Producer: Peter Glover 
30 mins., Wed., 11 p.m. 

Associated Television, from Lon¬ 
don 

This • program was one of com¬ 
mercial tv’s strongest weapons in ' 
the battle for the teenage audi¬ 
ence. It was played against BBV- 
TV’s “6-5 Special” on Saturday 
evenings and won a large, viewer- 
ship. Now it’s back in the sched¬ 
ules with a change in lineup and 
in an offpeak midweek slot. Basics 
ally the show has not changed. It’a 
as zany as ever and slickly pro¬ 
duced. Cast still earns large yocks 
for good comedy miming to top 
and unusual platters ana British 
recording artists are invited along 
to plug their latest waxings. Jack - 
Jackson has an .effervescent per¬ 
sonality and a good 4ense of fun. 
and has able support from the res¬ 
ident line-up. 

In the opening program guest 
artists were Alma Cogan, Dennis 
Lotis, Malcolm Vaughan, Lorrae 
Desmond and the Jazz Couriers, a 
modern combo fronted by tenor- 
men Tubby Hayes and Ronnie * 
Scott. Bary. 


A SONG FOR EVERYONE 
With Kenneth McKellar; , guest. 
Max Jaffa 

Director. Eddie Fraser 
25 Mins. 

BBC-TV, from Glasgow 

Kenneth McKellar, "Scot tenor 
who has become a top name in hi* 
own country within recent years, 
stars in this informal song program, 
and scores via sincerity and sim- - 
plicity, allied to fine set of pipes. 
He gives out strongly In such tunes 
as “Garden Where the Praties 
Grow ” “/■ - 1 -: r’u-'rd Thee,” and 

“Donkey Serenade.” Also regisr 
, (Continued on page 44) 














Wetodtjt Odabtr I»19SI 




mswaos REVIEWS 


31 


!! Tele Follow-Up Comment | 


Studio One 

A long and often distinguished 
aeries came to an end Monday 
night (29) when the Westinghouse 
‘‘Studio' One" on CBS-TV pre¬ 
sented its last show,. "Image of 
Fear.” Based on an intriguing 
Idea, the James Cavanaugh script 
somehow failed to carry it through 
end the play, despite several 
exciting moments, had g static 
quality. ’ 

A good cast had been, assembled 
for this final -show. Yarn was about 
a royal family in exile and the 
Upheavals in. their lives when, for 
a brief few hours, it-seems as if 
the monarchy is to be reestab- 
lishedr Some of the characters 
were wholly convincing. Others 
didn't come through. In any case, 
despite several very good perform¬ 
ances, the overall result was dis¬ 
appointing. 

Eugenia Leontovich played the 
empress in exile. She had dignity, 
hut the part was overdfawn and 
generated no sympathy whatever. 
Lib Darvas turned in a sock char¬ 
acterization as the dominated sister 
who takes refuge in drink and 
finally majces an attempt on the 
empress' life. Miss Darvas did quite 
a remarkable Job with the Tole. 
Bod Taylor was handsome hut not 
very convincing -at the' Crown 
Prince; Nina Foch seemed misscast 
and Donald Harron had a sym¬ 
pathetic part as the one member 
of the family who wanted to forget 
about the past. Buz Kulik’s direc¬ 
tion let the play down. 

"Studio One" has been on the 
air for very close to 10 years. 
Westinghouse picked it up in May 
of 1949. For the past season, the 
show originated in Hollywood, 
which added nothing to its quality. 
Monday night's show reemphasized 
that fact ' 

As in so many*times in the past, 
Betty Furness delivered the West- 
lnghquse pitch Monday night She 
seemed a little less impersonal 
than usual and her voice was 
higher pitched. A new hairdo and 
sack dress completed the impres¬ 
sion of a "new personality.” Like 
"Studio One,” Miss Furness ap¬ 
parently feels that it’s time to 
change. Hift. 

Ed Sullivan Show 

Ed Sullivan had“a* lot of show 
and nearly-all of it out of the vin¬ 
tage stocks on his Sunday (28) edi¬ 
tion.- There were nearly two of 
everything, but it seemed to work] 
out excellently because of the 
prime talents involved*; 

One of the strong points of this 
session was' the comedy. With the 
pennant winning N. Y. Yankees on 
atage/ Wayne A Schuster, Sulli¬ 
van's Canadian caperer* prepared 
an excellent baseball skit in which 
the. Yanks played the Liverpool 
White Spats. They came equipped 
With a full teem behind them, and 
they had' a jolly good time as did 
the audience in. this scene. These 
lads are articulate, literate and 
inventive—also funny. 

Another comedian on the bill 
was Shecky Greene who seems'to 
have been discovered anew in the 
lounges Of Las Vegas. Greene has 
a lot of funny lines and an expat, 
hardhitting delivery which he used 
to excellent advantage in this in¬ 
stance. 

The dance department was really 
loaded. There were two flamenco 
displays, either one of which would 
have served the name and enter¬ 
tainment requirements. Trlni 
Keyes led off with a briefie with 
backing from the talented Los 
Chayales de Espana. The major 
flamenco effort waa by Boberto 
Iflesias y Ci. f in a dramatic read¬ 
ing of a toreador making a^come- 
bacfc against his will and. coming 
to a fatal conclusion. Iflesias is an 
Interesting and fiery performer as 
well as an excellent dancer and 
did well. Also among the dancers 
was Bobby Van with backing by 
harpist Robert Maxwell. Both are 
fine artists, and it seemed unneces¬ 
sary to have the angel and pearly 
gates trappings which seemed to 
detract from, their sock work. 

Among the singers, Julie Wilson, 
doubling from the St Regia*' Mai¬ 
sonette, appeared in two spots 
which divided her effectiveness. 
Her opening was in the metier of a 
throwaway, and one tune.4n her 
second stint didn’t get her off the 
ground high enough. However, 
she’s quite decorative. The second 
singer must be quite a man, being 
engaged to Brigitte Bardot Sascha 
Distci is an entertainer, and pre -1 
sumably a good one. He' sang 
Tarlez Moi . D'Amour” and al- i 
though a guitarist by training, he 


did well in this number. He's a 
charmer. Jose. 

Pro Football . 

Tape playbacks at intermission 
of the touchdown plays and other 
hi g h l i gh ts was a Chi Cardinals- 
N. Y. Giants innovation Sunday af¬ 
ternoon over CBS-TV and a good 
thing, too, for at least a couple of 
reasons. One were the intrusive 
commercials which blacked-out a 
forward pass and jl kickoff and the 
other was the poor camera work 
generally; the lenser just didn't 
seem to know how to follow'the 
ball and the ball-carrier. It was Ir¬ 
ritating the Way he lost both and, 
in one instance, when he was' on 
the play. for some reason he 
switched cameras and lost the ac¬ 
tion. At another instance the re¬ 
turned kickoff was ably picked up 
as the ball-carrier was being 
tackled upfield instead of following 
him from the catch. The announcer 
was on the beam hut his lenser 
wasn’t. Abel. 

Breakfast in Hollywood 

A radio*standby for many years, 
"Breakfast in Hollywood” has been 
revived by KTLA in Los Apgeles 
for the more difficult medium of 
television, but it! passes the initial 
test of its transformation ’ as a 
frankly cornb.al! but engaging hour 
for the . busy housewife. The lady 
of the house, busy with her chores, 
need not plant herself in front of 
the set to view these proceedings; 
only" occasional .video consultation 
is necessary, for the audio tells the 
story as well as radio does. 

The show amounts to. a daily 
'romper room” for the less sophis¬ 
ticated middle-aged housewife, 
but, within'its limited appeal to 
this very .widespread group, scores 
as a well-planned, though seeming¬ 
ly informal, get together spiced by 
the surprise comic flights of an 
occasional. interviewee. Chatter 
ranges from the inane “Oh, you’re 
from Inglewood—do you know the 
Miller’s out there?” type to the un¬ 
consciously funny "I was a switch¬ 
board operator in a Chinese laun¬ 
dry in Honolulu 20 years ago” va¬ 
riety. "Features” and "honors” 
run rampant, but keep matters 
rolling along. Show, which must 
set an alltime high in the matter 
of honors bestowed, honors every¬ 
thing from "someone in the U.S. 
celebrating her hundreth birth¬ 
day” to "someone somewhere hav¬ 
ing a bit of trouble,” 

Harry Babbitt, attempting to fill 
the well-worn shoes of radio’s late 
Tom Brenneman, makes an affable 
emcee, and lends his still-vibrant 
voice to*a few times as an added 
contribution. He manages to get 
the most out of a roanful of most¬ 
ly elderly ladies gathered at the 
Town and Country Room of Holly¬ 
wood’s Plaza Hoteh from which the 
station beams a daily remote. Di¬ 
rector Russ Randall and producer 
Emma . Helen Bodd have provided 
a well-paced hour-long entry that 
may he heavy op gushy 'sentiment 
and lowbrow humor,"but one that 
matches the apparent demand of. 
the predominantly femme local 
morning audience. A Chet Miden- 
dorf production, only two blurbs 
by Flav-R Straws Interrupted the 
initial offering. Tube, 

Colgate Theatre 

Out of the Fpur Star stable (into 
the Tuesday night “Colgate Thea¬ 
tre") came "Macreedy’s Woman,” 
a pilot starring Jane Russell as the 
singing hostess-owner of a nitery. 
Despite the Russell name, it’s pain¬ 
fully obvious why this didn’t sell. 
The story is almost conspicuous by 
its absence; ’ Miss Russell shows 
little emotion in her role, lacking 
warmth and expression; direction 
is erratic. 

Into Miss Russell’s fancy saloon 
comes a wanderer claiming her late 
husband owed him $500, and he 
Lasan lOU to prove It. For reasons 
never known until'the end,.-she 
refuses to pay, but offers him a job 
as an 88’er in her club. He reluc¬ 
tantly takes it, but is playing the 
Ivories with those five C notes in 
his eyes,.even considers a robbery 
to get the' coin. Meanwhile, it de¬ 
velops the late MacReedy was a 
really nice character, who reform¬ 
ed the- bartender who had been a 
Skid Row bum, etc. Nothing much 
really happen?, except that Miss 
Russell sings a coupla tunes to 
display her *good set of pipes; 
Eventually, the guy gets his money, 
ind it develops the boss kept it 
originally because she knew he 
needed a job more than the money. 
This nitery was more a reform 
school than a club, as the guy re¬ 
marks. 

DOn Durant gives better than 
what he got as the out-of-luck 88’er, 
and Sean McClory and Jonathan 
(Continued on page 42) 


WPK Treads QAiral 
Waters, Makes Going To 
School Via TV a Romp 

New York City’s first- public- 
supported educational tv project is 
an edifying experience. What the 
Board of Regents of the New York 
State Education Department has 
done over the leased facilities of 
WPIX on a five-hour a day sched¬ 
ule is nothing short of remarkable. 

Working under the most diffi¬ 
cult circumstances, James Macah- 
drew, executive head of the proj¬ 
ect, corralled a posse of preceptors 
who know their stuff and sell it 
with consummate'-skill, showman¬ 
ship and thorough ’ educational 
validity. 

This is glowing daytitoe tv and 
in addition to providing effective 
video classroom teaching within a 
100-mile radius of Channel ll’s 
transmitter it could* drastically 
change the daily household pattern 
by bringing the housewife, young 
and old, hack to. the electronic 
school room for. further adventures 
in cultural waters. 

The tv lesson#, as now constitut- 
ed r consist of Spanish, Math, Sci¬ 
ence, English,, Pre-School Educa¬ 
tion, Music, Physics, Arts and 
Crafts,' Citizenship Education, Sci¬ 
ence., for Elementary School 
Teachers and Joe. Bolton’s simpli¬ 
fied. newscasts. Currently, the 
state school project calls for 28 
hours and 20 minutes of video 
teaching but starting Monday (6) 
it’ll he stepped up to some 35 hours 
of daytime weekly instructions. 

It is astonishing to watch the 
teachers as they. skillfully impart 
their wisdom to the moppets in 
the classroom and to the mothers 
at home. These teachers are proof 
positive that the- profession is a 
noble one and«decidedly deserving 
of better recompense from an in¬ 
different, eallous population. 

Sets are reduced to the mini¬ 
mum, save for the blessed black¬ 
board, a few props •and'the steady 
freshlets of knowledge" pouring 
from the lips of,' s h o wm an 1 y 
schoolmarms. (pretty .as a. fine 
video picture, too)"and schoolmas¬ 
ters. Entire school day’s output 
comes from one studio.which un¬ 
doubtedly must present multitudi¬ 
nous production problexps but the 
programs caught'‘during the first 
week appeared to go off with pro¬ 
fessional dispatch and decorum. 

Miss Vera Villegas, a bright-eyed 
Spanish teacher, from the Hicks- 
ville public school, is a pro from 
start to finish. She has a delight¬ 
ful maimer (humming, winking, 
finger-snapping) and her allusions 
to contemporary events make the 
course a sheer delight. The* same 
can be said for Dorothy Geddes, 
Hunter College High School 
teacher, who imparts the funda¬ 
mentals of math with ease and. 
simplicity. Similarly Barbara Yan- 
owski turns science into play and 
the Harvard Univ. Graduate School 
of Education film on French with 
its graded direct method and stick 
figures is equally informative and 
highly absorbing- 
Arthur Hutchings* who teaches 
arts and crafts in the Armonk pub¬ 
lic schools, is entrancing the young¬ 
sters with the story of singe de¬ 
signing, ceramics, mobiles, collages, 
mosaics, murals and other phases 
of contemporary art. His first les¬ 
son dealt with tempera painting, 
basic stuff to be sure but the kids 
couldn’t help but enjoy and learn 
at the same time. Furthermore, 
there’s a splendid pre-school educa¬ 
tional feature, "Fun at Ofte” with 
Jeanni Sparks and Mary Ellen Su- 
lek that will'prove a blessing -to 
perplexed mothers of tots, 

Edward Schweikardt gives a 
Citizenship Education lesson that 
also rates an A from 'both In¬ 
school and out-of-schoof- viewers 
and his sign-off: "Quiet in the hall¬ 
ways, please” is sufficient to~*halt. 
any hi-jinks practiced by restless 
freshmen. This is only a partial 
list of the rewarding elements on 
Channel 11. 

Macandrew’s production staff in¬ 
cludes Lee Polk, Edward King and 
Christopher Christenson. They do 
heroic work. Marvin Long is the 
project stage manager and the 
WPIX project coordinator is Ed¬ 
ward Roberts. These men and 
their video teaching staff are in¬ 
deed staging a vast, cultural up¬ 
heaval in the New York region: 

Maybe this was what men lie 
Nipkow and Zworykin had in mind 
when they Tried to link sight to 
sound: Going to school these days ’ 
via Channel 11 should be a perfect 
romp* Rons, j 


BILLY GRAHAM’S CHARLOTTE 

CRUSADE 

Witte GJiff Barrows, George Bev- 

„erty Shea, others 
$# Minfc, Sat., 8 tf.HL 
BILLY GRAHAM EVANGELIST 

ASSN. - 

ABC-TV, from Charlotte, N. C. 

(Whiter F. Bennett > 

The words "old fashioned revival 
meeting” are being put out of fash¬ 
ion by the Billy Graham erusades, 
the latest—from* Charlotte, N. C. 
fed to the ABC-TV hookup—is an 
ideal case in point. The sincere 
and lively Dr. Graham was sur¬ 
rounded on the first of these an¬ 
nual telecasts last Saturday'(27) by 
a popular baritone, a vast chorus 
and a musical director resembling 
a chubby Jack Smith with a pen¬ 
chant for production numbers on 
a grand scale. 

Cliff Barrow is the- straight 
pitchman and in charge of the 
show’s panoramic chorus: Since 
each man has the right to go about 
religion in his own manner, it 
wouldn’t be fair to quibble with 
Barrow’s ultra-modernization of 
the appointments; surrounding Dr. 
Graham’s forcefulness, hut it cer¬ 
tainly was unusual. Barrow intro- 
troduced early in the hourlong 
live program a -pitch for "The 
Christian Life Guide,” a pamphlet 
which he said was a .worthy distil¬ 
lation of many important religious 
precepts and which, he pointed out 
with accompanying demonstrative 
gestures, "slips very* easily” (into 
your coat pocket); ‘tyou can take it 
with you wherever you go.” 

The smiling exuberance of Bar? 
rows was complemented by the 
singing charms of’ George Beverly 
Shea, who rendered his liturgical 
solos with the inflections of a suave 
crooner, and by the amassed 
Graham "Choirs.” The massive, 
modern Charlotte Coliseum—filled 
for the tv opening — resounded 
with their spirited songs. The prq-. 
duction appeared to be under Bar- 
rows direction, although the un¬ 
named technical director deserves 
recognition for his fancy montages 
and overlaps. 

Rather than warm up the audi¬ 
ence for the meat of the evening, 
this glitter and grandness seemed 
jQnly to 'detract from Dr. Graham’s 
initial remarks. Yet shortly after 
'the* Evangelist concluded ids ap¬ 
peal for donations to pay for the 
telecast, his appeal for people, and 
nations to Tight themselves 
through religion began to have the. 
proper effect 

Lawrence Welk, who starts his 
own ABC-TV program at 9 p.m. can 
only benefit from the lead-in pro¬ 
vided by this unusual performance 
from Charlotte. At t, 


DRAGNET 
With Jack Webb, Ben Alexander, 
Georgia Ellis, Steve Mitchell, 
Louise Lorimer, Paul Maxwell, 
others 

Producer-director: Webb 
Writer; Ken Kolb 
30 Mins., Tues., 7:30 p.m. 

BULOVA 
NBC-TV (film) 

(McCann-EHckson) 

All the signs point to this season 
being "Dragnet’s” last. And more’s 
the pity,, since the ~Jack Webb 
stanza still shows every sign of the 
vigor- and preciseness that has 
characterized it through the years. 
It’s still topflight production, and 
if Webb’s Staccato dialog and direc¬ 
tion technique has outgrown the 
tv audience, fact remains that 
’Dragnet” still boasts some of the 
solidest story material and most 
flawless production-in the business. 

Opener is a hardhitting script by 
Ken Kolb, dealing with a child 
heater. Webb, as producer, direc¬ 
tor and lead, gives it a punch and 
driving-pace that doesn’t let up 
until the last couple of minutes, 
when Webb permits himself the 
indulgence of some needless mor¬ 
alizing. 'Indeed, that’s the one 
weak link in this otherwise stand¬ 
out episode: the story speaks for 
itself without Webb having to spell 
it out 

Webb and. Ben Alexander, an¬ 
swering a call of a neighbor who’s 
heard a child being beaten, dis¬ 
cover a youngster with a back full 
of cuts and bruises inflicted by a 
coathanger. They book the mother, 
get her to admit it was her husband 
who inflicted the beating and final¬ 
ly track him down. Story’s as 
simple as that, hut Webb contrib¬ 
utes a lot more fire to his role than 
Is customary, and the entire tenor 
of the yarn is maintained at a 
piledriving pace. 

Add to Webb’s 'extra-good per¬ 
formance in this outing Ben Alex¬ 
ander’s fine counterplaying, an 
excellent characterization by Geor¬ 
gia Ellis of an unfeeling mother, 
and a good, snarling performance 
by Steve Mitchell as the brutal 
father, and it adds up to one of; 
(Continued on page 42) 


THE GEORGE GOREL SHOW 
With Keely Smith, Jim Backus, 

guests; Fred Albeck, The Kids 

Next Door, Frank Devol orch, 

others 

Producer; Bill Burch 

Director: Norman Abbott . -> 

Writers: Norman Lear, Tom Koch, 

Phil Green, Leo Solomon, Dan 

Beaumont 

$0 Mins., alt. Tues., 8 pmL 
RCA, LAM FILTERS 
NBC-TV, from Hollywood (color) 
(K&E, D-F-S) 

Lonesome George Gobel 
shouldn’t be lonesome for long 
this season, if his premiere show 
is an accurate sampling of what’s 
to come every other' Tuesday on 
NBC-TV. Gobel, like nearly every 
other comic in the business, has 
had his ups and downs in the past 
couple of years, but It looks as if 
this year the Section is up. 

With a great writing assist, from 
his scripting quintet, Gobel main¬ 
tained a consistently funny course 
over most of the 68 minutes. And 
with some bright guest turns, along 
with an attractive brand new sing¬ 
ing quintet and a comedy assist in 
the person of Fred Albeck as per¬ 
manent cast' members, he turned 
out a thoroughly “enjoyable show. 

Highlight of the stanza was that 
portion of the storyline that 
spoofed NBC's executive-level pro¬ 
tocol, with v.p. John West as the 
principal target of the satire. It 
war an old bit, the business of get¬ 
ting to the top through channels, 
but with Jim Backus as one of the 
lower-rung execs turning in ..one 
of his inimitable stuffed-shirt 
characterizations, it remained fresh. 

Topper, though, was a thorough¬ 
ly original and ingenious piece cf 
nonsense, wherein Gobel and Al¬ 
beck, in an effort to get West to 
come to them, sit down in the NBC 
cafeteria and begin playing a hila¬ 
rious "game” they call "Shtuek.” 
with each of them making up 
moves and terms as they go along 
and deadpanning it while the 
kibitzers take it seriously. It was 
inspired comedy that came off per¬ 
fectly. Gobel also* got In some 
good closing licks with an end 
transportation credit to Schlock 
Airlines. 

Show opened somewhat slowly. 
With a Gobel monolog on sum¬ 
mer vacations and kids failing to 
get much reaction. But the pace 
picked up quickly with guest star 
Keely Smith, working this one as 
a single, with a.fine rendition of 
"HI Get By,” followed by some 
banter with Gobel and a funny 
duetting oh "Everybody Loves a 
Lover.” Gobel, incidentally, ap¬ 
peared to have succeeded with Miss 
Smith where hubby Louis Prima 
has failed, at least onstage, these 
many years—he broke her up com¬ 
pletely. bliss Smith closed out her 
turn later with some solid chirp¬ 
ing on "Don’t Take Your Love from 
Me.” 

Albeck, who’s billed as "The 
Great Dane” and plays Gobel’s but¬ 
ler, shapes up a perfect straight- 
man for Gobel. He’s tall, spare 
and speaks with a precise British 
accent, a perfect contrast to GobeL 
And as a foil, he turned in a top¬ 
flight job of deadpanning it 
throughout. Singing quintet, The 
Kids Next Door, comprise four 
young sisters and a brother, and 
they demonstrated plentv of talent 
in a medley of "Moonlight Bay” 
and "Heart of My Heart” and then 
a pairing with Gobel on "Sugar¬ 
time.” They’ll be around for 
awhile. Gobel himself turned In 
a fine vocal stint on “Soon I’ll Wed 
My Love.” 

Perhaps Gobel was hampered 
last season by being tied down to a 
cross-guesting arrangement with 
Eddie Fisher, who holds down the 
skip-week with Gobel on Tues- 
days* That’s not the situation this 
year, however, and the week off 
will probably help Gobel with.his 
material, while freedom from hav¬ 
ing to work Fisher into each show 
will probably prvoide more flexi¬ 
bility of format and writing. 

As for the writers, team of Nor¬ 
man Lear, Tom Koch, Phil Green, 
Leo Solomon and Dan Beaumont 
turned In a fine opening show. 
Norman Abbott’s direction kept 
things zippy, and Frank Devol’s 
musical direction was right on the 
dot. Looks like Gomalca and pro¬ 
ducer Bill Burch have a compatible 
color winner 6a their hands. The 
tint, incidentally, was handled with 
discretion and taste on the opener. 

Chan. 


Viceroy Beys Boots 
As Mennen Replacement 

Viceroy is stepping into ABC- 
TV*s Wednesday night fights with 
Mennen reportedly quitting the 
stanza. New sales puts Viceroy into 
a co-sponsorship arrangement with 
Miles. 

’ Date of the cig bankroller** 
moveta has not been established, 
but.it is expected it’ll take over the 
Mennen spot within a month. 





starring RICHARD 






34 


TV-FILMS 


t'fikWF? 


Wednesday, October I, 1958 


Mo/Pfv TFT 17OTTT Cl? r'TTV DV rTTV DPArD All mADT Vamot’s weekly chart if based on the 22 major markets regularly reported by Tele- 
r>*Kl£T/• 1 MJ!xIjLMi UI l-DI-LJ.I l FltUtrKAM CUAK 1. pulse each month, in addition to 133 other Telepulse tabulated U.S. markets , covered 
over the course of a year. Cities will be rotated meekly. The Vamety chart is ef compilation of data on syndicated films , as well as network and live programs, in each 
market Under .the top 10 multi-weekly heading, the (t) stands for local programming and the (*) for network shows. 


HOUSTON- GALVESTON Stations: KGUL, KPRC, KTRK. TV Homes: 351,700. Survey Dates: August 1-8, 1958. 


TOP TEN NETWORK SHOWS AY. 

RK. PROGRAM—DAY—TIME ST A. RTG. 


1. Gnnsmoke (Sat. 9:00-9:30). KGUL 31.2 

2. Ed Sullivan (Sun. 7:00-8:00).KGUL 27.2 

3. Alfred Hitchcock (Sun. 8:30-9:00)_KGUL 26.4 

4. G. E. Theatre (Sun. 8:00-8:30).KGUL 26.1 

5. $64,000 Challenge (Sun. 9:00-9:30)... KGUL 25.2 

6. Have Gun Will Travel (Sat. 8:30-9)... KGUL 24.6 

7. Bob Crosby (Sat. 7:00-8:00). KPRC 24.3 

8. I Love Lucy (Mon. 8:00-8:30).KGUL 24.2 

9. Twenty One (Mon. 8:00-8:30). KPRC 23.9 

10. What's My Line (Sun. 9:30-10:00)... .KGUL 23.7 

10, Wyatt Earn .(Tues. 7:30-8:00).KTRK 23.7 


TOP TBN MULTI-WEEKLY SHOWS AV. 
RK. PROGRAM—DAY—TIME STA. RTG. 


1. iMy Little Margie (M-F 6:00-6:30).. KGUL 16.1 

2. ♦Atoer Bandstand (M-F 4:00-5:00).. KTRK 12.8 

3. ’Verdict Is Yours (M-F 2:30-3:00) . KGUL 12.7 

4. tWorld, Today-Sports (M-F 6-6:15).. KPRC 12.4 

5. tNewsreel. Wea. (M-F 6:15-6:30) ... KPRC 12.2 

6. ’Price Is Right (M-F 10-10:30 am.) KPRC 11.5 

7. tAward Theatre (M-F 10:00-11:15) KGUL 11.4 

8. *Art Linkletter (M-F 1:30-2:00).KGUL 11.1 

8. ♦Big Payoff (M-F *00-2:30). KGUL 11.1 

8. fNews, Wea. (M-F 10:00-10:15) .. KTRK 11.1 


TOP TWENTY SYNDICATED SHOWS 
RK. PROGRAM—DAY—TIME STA. DISTEDB. 


1. Highway Patrol (Tues. 9:30).KGUL... 

2. Silent Service (Tues. 9:30)...KPRC 

3. Union Pacific (Fri. 7:30). .KTRK... 

4. Soldiers of Fortune (Fri. 6:30).KGUL... 

5. Studio 57 (Tues. 10:00).....KGUL... 

6. My Little Margie (M-F 6:00)........ KGUL... 

7. Gray Ghost (Thurs. 7:30) ..KPRC... 

8. Men of Annapolis (Wed. 9:30).KPRC- 

9. Bengal Lancers (Tues. 8:30).KTRK... 

10. Decoy (Thurs. 10:00)...KGUL... 

10. Whirlybirds (Sat. 6:00)..KPRC.,.. 

10. Your All Star Theatre (Tues. 9:00)... KTRK... 

11. Big Story (Mon. 10:00)..KPRC.... 

11. Topper (Sun. 5:30) ..KPRC.... 

12. Harbor Command (Sun. 9:30)....... KPRC- 

13. Boots & Saddles (Sun. 8;00).KTRK 

14. Mr. District Attorney (Sat- 6:00)..... KGUL 

15. Public Defender (Wed. 10:00).KPRC.... 

16. Mike Hammer (Thurs. 9:00)..KTRK... 

17. Sea Hunt (Mon. 9:30). .KTRK... 

17. Top Play’s of '58 (Sun. 8:30)... KTRK... 


AV. 

AV. 

f TOP COMPETITION 

AV. 

RTG. 

SH. 

PROGRAM 

STA, 

RTG. 

22.4 

42 

Silent Service . 

..KPRC 

19.4 

19.4 

36 

Highway Patrol ...... 

..KGUL 

22.4 

18.5 

32 

Destiny .... 

..KGUL 

21.5 

17.3 

36 

Rin Tin Tin. 

. .KTRK 

18.8 

16.7 

46 

( News, Weather . 

..KTRK 

9.9 



| Movietime U.S.A. ... 

. KTRK 

9.6 

16.1 

43 

f World Today-Sports . 

. KPRC 

12.4 



( Newsreel, Weather .. 

. KPRC 

12.2 

15.8 

30 

Verdict Is Yours . 

. KGUL 

21.0 

15.6 

34 

Circle Theatre . 

. KGUL 

17.6 

14.7 

26 

Spotlight Playhouse .. 

..KGUL 

20.9 

14.3 

38 

(News, Weather . 

. KTRK 

12.9 



( Movietime U.S.A. ... 

. KTRK 

12.3 

14.3 

38 

Mr. District Attorney . 

. KGUL 

12.8 

14.3 

26 

Bid ’n’ Buy . 

. .KGUL 

20.6 

13.7 

36 

Award Theatre . 

. KGUL 

14.9 

13.7 

43 

Air Power . 

. KGUL 

11.0 

13.4 

28 

What’s My Line. 

. KGUL 

23.7 

13.2 

23 

G.E. Theatre .... 

. .KGUL 

26.1 

12.8 

34 

Whirlybirds .......... 

. KPRC 

14.3 

12.0 

32 

Award Theatre ....... 

. .KGUL 

14.0 

11.0 

22 

Playhouse . 

KGUL 

21.6 

10.8 

22 

Studio One . 

! .KGUL 

19.7 

10.8 

20 

Alfred Hitchcock . 

. KGUL 

26.4 


. Ziv 
. .CNP 
. CNP 
. MCA 
. MCA 

. Official 

..CBS 
. .Ziv 

. .Screen Gems 
. Official 

..CBS 

. Screen Gems 
.. Official 
. .Telestar 
..Ziv 
..CNP 
. Ziv 

. .Interstate 
..MCA 
. .Ziv 

. .Screen Gems 


SAN DIEGO 


Stations: KFMB, KFSD, XETV. TV Homes: 279,900. Survey Dates: August 1-8, 1958. 


TOP TEN NETWORK SHOWS 


L Gnnsmoke (Sat 9:00-9:30). KFMB 30.2 

2. Ed Sullivan (Sun. 8:00-9:00).KFMB 29.4 

3. Have Gun-Will Travel (Sat 8:30-9) .KFMB 29.0 

4. G. E. Theatre (Sun. 9:00-9:30).KFMB 27.5 

5. Perry Mason (Sat 6:30-7:30).KFMB 26.7 

«. Lassie (Sun. 7:00-7:30).KFMB 26.b 

6. Tales of Wells Fargo (Mon. 8:30-9)... KFSD 26.5 

7. Oh Susanna (Sat. 8:00-8:30) .KFMB 26.2 

8 . Restless Gun (Mon. 8:00-8:30).KFSD 25.5 

9. Wyatt Earp (Tues. 8:30-9:00).XETV 25.2 


TOP TEN MULTI-WEEKLY SHOWS 


1. tThls Day '58 (M-F 7:30-8:00).KFMB 17.9 

2. *CBS News (M-F 6:15-6:30).KFMB 13.7 

3. tS. D. Dateline (M-F 6:00-6:15).KFMB 13.3 

4. ’Art Linkletter (M-F 1:30-2:00).KFMB 11.0 

5. tBir Movie (T, Th 6:00-8:00).KFSD 10.6 

«. tPopeye (M-F 5:30-6:00) .KFSD" 9.8 

7. tNighthawk (T, Th 10:00-10:15)..., XETV 9.5 

8. ♦Edge of Night (M-F 3:30-4:00).KFMB 9.0 

9. ♦Beat The Clock (M-F 1:00-1:30) ... - KFMB 8.4 

9. +J. Downs Exoress (M-F 3:30-4:00) . KFSD 8.4 

9. ♦Price Is Right (M-F 10-10:30 a.m.) KFSD 8.4 


1. Sheriff of Cochise (Sat 9:30).KFMB.NTA 

2. Gray Ghost (Mon. 6:30) ...._KFSD.CBS 

3. Highway Patrol (Fri. 9:30).. XETV.Ziv 

4. State Trooper (Mon. 7:00) ........KFSD.MCA 

5. Harbor Command (Sat. 10:00) ....... KFMB.... Ziv t 

6. Jeff's Collie (Fri. 6:30)...;. .KFMB..., JPA 

6. Sea Hunt (Thurs. 7:00)...,.KFMB.... 

7. Twenty Six Men (Wed. 7:00).KFMB.... Ag£ 

8. Boots * Saddles (Mon. 6:00). .KFSD..... CNP 

8. Captured (Fri. 8:30) ..XETV.....CNP 

9. Star Performance (M, Th 10:00).KFMB.... .Official 

ID. Target (Fri. 10:00).... ...........XETV.Ziv 

11. Annie Oakley (Sun. 5:30).KFMB.CBS 

12. Cisco Kid (Wed. 6:30)...KFMB.... Ziv 

13. Decoy (Sat. 10:00)... .......... XETV .... Official 

13. Science Fiction Theatre (Mon. 7:30) XETV .... Ziv 

14. Confidential File (Sun. 9:30) .: XETV .... Guild 

15. Men of Annapolis (Tues. 7:00).XETV .... Ziv 

16. Donovan, West Marshall (Thurs. 6) . XETV .... CNP 

17. Paris Precinct (Thurs. 6:30)... XETV .... Guild 


22.2 

50 

Lawrence. Welk . 

.. .XETV 

13.5 

19.5 

45 

Robin Hood.. 

.. KFMB 

15,7 

17.2 

39 

Thin Man .. 

., .KFSD 

14.5 

16.9 

39 

Burns and Allen. 

.. .KFMB 

16,2 

16.7 

45 

Decoy .. v ... 

...XETV 

13.2 

16.5 

47 

Feature Film ....... 

...XETV 

9.5 

16.5 

44 

( Big Movie.. 

,. .KFSD 

10.5 



) Crossroads . 

.. .XETV 

10.5 

15.9 

37 

Boxing ..... 

.. .XETV 

17.5 

15.2 

' 42 

( San Diego Dateline.. 

.. KFMB 

12.7 



} CBS News’.. 

.. KFMB 

13.3 

15.2 

28 

Playhouse of Stars... 

.. .“KFMB 

22.5 

15.1 

38 

Suspicion . 

...KFSB 

16.5 

14.5 

51 

Shock Theatre . 

...KFMB 

8.0 

14.0 

54 

Laurel &. Hardy. 

.. .XETV 

7.5 

13.5 

39 

f Ringside-Wrestlers . 
) Sports Den ... 

.. XETV 
.. XETV 

11.0 

10.7 

13.2 

36 

Harbor Command_ 

..KFMB 

16.7 

13.2 

29 

This Dav ’58. 

.. KFMB 

201! 

12.7 

26 

Alfred Hitchcock_ 

.. .KFMB 

24.5 

12.2 

32 

Mr. Adams & Eve ... 

.. .KFMB 

14.5 

11.5 

32 

( San Diego Dateline.. 

.. KFMB 

14.0 



1 CBS News. 

.. KFMB 

14,3 

io.9 

28 

Sergeant Preston ... 

...KFMB 

17.2 


CHARLOTTE 


Stations: WBTY, WSOC. TV Homes: 62,400. Survey Dates: August 4-11, 1958. 


TOP TEN NETWORK SHOWS 


L Gnnsmoke (Sat 10:00-10:30).WBTV 48.3 

2. Ed Sullivan (Sun. 8:00-9:00).WBTV 46.5 

8 . G. E. Theatre (Sun. 9:00-9:30).WBTV 45.3 

4. Alfred Hitchcock (Sun. 9:30-10:00).. .WBTV 43.8 

5. I've Got A Secret (Wed. 9:30-10:00).. WBTV 41.8 

6. Have Gun Will Travel (Sat. 9:30-10) WBTV 40.8 

6 . Millionaire (Wed. 9:00-9:30).WBTV 40.8 

7. Restless Gun (Mon. 8:00-8:30).WSOC 39.3 

7. Tales of Wells Fargo (Mon. 8:30-9).. .WSOC 39.3 

8 . I Love Luey (Mon. 9:00-9:30).WBTV 38.81 


TOP TEN MULTI-WEEKLY SHOWS 


1. *CBS News (M-F 6:45-7:00)..WBTV 23.9 

2. tEsso Reporter, Wea. (M-F 6:30-6:45) WBTV 23.6 

3. *Edge of Night (M-F 4:30-5:00).WBTV 20.5 

4. IWea., Late News (M-F 11:00-11:15).. WBTV 20.4 

5. tLittle Rascals (M-F 5:30-6:00) .WBTV 19.5 

«. tMy Little Margie (M-F 5:00-5:30)... WBTV 18.8 

7. ’Secret Storm (M-F 4:15-4:30).WBTV 18.0 

8. ♦Brighter Day (M-F 4:00-4:15).WBTV 17,8 

9. ♦Search For Tomorrow WBTV 17,7 

(M-F 12:30-12:45). 

19. ♦Guiding Light (M-F 12:45-1:00) ... .WBTV 17.5 


1 . 

2 . 

3. 

4. 

5. 

5. 

6 . 

7. 

8 . 
9. 

ID. 

11 . 

12 . 

13. 

14. 

15. 

16. 

17 . 

18. 
19. 


Sea Hunt (Wed. 8:00)... .WBTV.... Ziv 

Amos V Andy (Thurs. 8:00)...WBTV:_CBS 

Silent Service (Fri. 10:30).....WBTV_CNP 

Mike Hammer (Sat. 10:30)......WBTV.MCA 

Death Valley Days (Fri. 8:00)..WBTV.U.S. Borax 

Jeffs Collie (Wed. 7:30k ..WBTV_TPA 

Harbor Command (Sat. 7:00)....... - WBTV.Ziv 

Dr. Hudson (Thurs. 7.30).WBTV.MCA 

Decoy (Tues. 7:30)...WSOC.... .Official 

Sheriff of Cochise (Tues. 8:30).. .WBTV.NTA 

Frontier Marshal (Tues, 7:30).WBTV.NTA 

Union Pacific (Fri. 8:30)....WSOC.... CNP 

If Yon Had A Million (Fri. 7:00).WSOC.... MCA 

Hopalong Cassidy (Sat. 8:30 a.m.).. .WBTV.... CNP 

State Trooper (Thurs. 7:00).........WSOC. MCA' 

Little Rascals (Mon.-Fri. 5:30).WBTV. ,.. .Interstate 

Twenty Six Men (Sat. 7:00)..WSOC.ABC 

My Little Margie (Mon.-Fri. 5:00)... .WBTV.Official 

Little Rascals (Sat. 8:00 a.m.).WBTV.....Interstate 

Popeye (Mon.-Fri., Sun. 6:()0).WSOC.AAP 


38.8 ’ 

70 

Disneyland . 

..WSOC 

16.3 

34.8 

58 

Best of Groucho. 

..WSOC 

25.3 

33.3 

73 

Thin Man .;. 

..WSOC 

12.3 

30.8 

68 

Joseph Cotten \....... 

..WSOC 

14.3 

30.3 

58 

Jefferson Drum . 

..WSOC 

21.8 

30.3 

63 

Disneyland . 

..WSOC 

17.8 

29.3 

60 

Twenty Six Men. 

..WSOC 

19.3 

25.8 

49 

Circus Boy .... 

. .WSOC 

27.3 

25.3 

52 

Frontier Marshall .... 

..WBTV 

23.8 

24.3 

43 

Investigator .. 

..WSOC 

31.8 

23.8 

48 

Decoy . 

..WSOC 

25.3 

22.8 

41 

Destiny .. 

..WBTV 

32.3 

22.3 

51 

Arthur Smith . 

..WBTV 

21.3 

21.8 

79 

(Roy Rogers . 

. . WSOC 

5.0 



( Adventure Serial ... 

. .WSOC 

6.3 

20.8 

47 

Anybody Can Play.... 

. .WBTV 

23.8 

19.5 

58 

Micky Mouse Club. 

. .WSOC 

14.0 

19.3 

40 

Harbor Command .... 

..WBTV 

29.3 

18.8 

66 

Fun At Five. 

. . WSOC 

9.8 

16.8 

86 

Roy Rogers . 

. .WSOC 

4.3 

16.7 

50 

Search . 

..WBTV 

19.3 


COLUMBIA, S. CAROLINA 


Stations: WIS, WNOK. TV Homes? 39,400. Survey Dates: August 1-28, 1958. 


TOP TEN NETWORK SHOWS 


L Tales of Wells Fargo (Mon. 8:30-9).. .WIS 
2. Groucho Marx (Thurs. 8:00-8:30).... WIS 

2. Restless Gun (Mon. 8:00-8:30).......WIS 

3. Father Knows Best (Wed. 8:30-9:00). WIS 

4. Boh Cummings (Tues. 9:30-10:00)... WIS 

4, Californians (Thurs. 8:30-9:00).WIS 

5. People's Choice (Thurs. 9:00-9:30).. .WIS 
5. Twenty One (Mon. 9:00-9:30)........WIS 

8 . Investigator (Tues. 8:00-9:00).WIS 

7. Real MeCoys (Mon. 7:30-8:00).... ..WIS 


TOP TEN MULTI-WEEKLY SHOWS 


L tEsso Reporter (M-F 6:45-7:00).WIS 

2. ^Today's We*. Sp’t# (M-F 6:30-6:45).WIS 

3. tLate News, Wea. (M-F 11:00-11:15).WIS 

4. tCactns Qnave (M-F 5:30-6:00)...... WIS 

5. ’Queen For A Day (M-F 4:00-4:45). .WIS 
8 . ’Prioe Is Right, (M-F 11-11:30 ami.). WIS 

7. ’Haggis Baggfa (M-F 2:303:00).WIS 

7. ’Modem Romances (M-F 4:45-5:00). .WIS 
f. ’TW Tac Dough (M-F 12 Nn.-12:30) .WIS 
f. tPalhtttto Playhouse (M-F 1:05-2:30) WIS 


43.3 
41.8 

41.8 

40.8 

39.8 

39.8 

38.3 

38.3 

37.3 

36.8 


24.6 

24.2 

17.5 

17.2 

16.5 

14.8 
14.4 
14.4 

13.8 

13.7 


1. Gray Ghost (Thurs. 7:30) . 

..WIS,... 

. CBS 

39.8 

81 

Sherlock Holmes 

.WNOK 

9.8 

2. Highway Patrol (Mon. 9:30)....... 

..WIS.... 

..Ziv 

35.8 

72 

Frontier Justice . 


13.8 

3. Badge 714 (Wed. 8:00). 

..WIS.,.. 

; CNP 

34.3 

63 

Zorro .. 

.WNOK 

19.8 

4. Cisco Kid (Wed. 7:00). 

..WIS.... 

. Ziv 

33.8 

80 

( Sports, Weather. 

News WNOK 

8.0 






( CBS News .... 

.. ..: .WNOK 

8.5 

5. Mr. & Mrs. North (Mon. 7:00) ...,. 

■ WIS.... 

. .Telestar 

32.3 

82 

(Sports, Weather, 

News WNOK 

7.0 






( CBS News .... 

. WNOK 

7.5 

6 . State Trooper (Wed. 6:00) . 

..WIS.... 

..MCA 

29.3 

78 

Tomahawk . 

. WNOK 

8.3 

7. O. Henry Playhouse (Thurs. 7:00) .. 

..WIS.... 

. Gross-Krasne 

27.8 

- 76 

(Sports, Weather, 

News WNOK 

8.5 






(CBS News 


9.0 

7. Twenty Six Men (Thurs. 10:30)- 

..WIS.... 

.ABC 

27.8 

50 

Playhouse 90 ... 

. ... .WNOK' 

27.8 

S. Sea Hunt (Tues. 6:00)... 

.WIS.,.. 

..Ziv 

26.3 

78 

Tomahawk .. 

■urwnir 

7.3 

$. Star A The Story (Tues. 7:00)..... 

..WIS. 

. Official 

25.8 

73 

(Sports, Weather, News WNOK 

9.5 






( CBS News . 

.....WNOK 

95 

16. Silent Service (Sun. 6:00).. 

,.WIS. 

. CNP 

22.8 

73 

Search. 

WNOK 

8.3 

1L Charlie Chan (Sat. 10:30)......... 

..WNOK.. 

..TPA 

17.8 

44 

Joseph Cotten .... 


22*8 

12. Target (Tues. 8:30)..... 4 .. 

..WNOK.. 

. .Ziv 

16.3 

30 

Investigator 

WIS 

37.8 

13. Liberaee (Wed. 8:30)... 

..WNOK.. 

..Guild 

149 

27 

Father Knows Best 

.... .WIS 

40.8 

14. Looney Tunes (Sat. 5:00).. 

..WIS. 

. Guild 

12.8 

53 

Baseball Game of Week. WNOK 

11.5 

15. Pnblic Defender (Mon. 8:00).. 

..WNOK.. 

. .Interstate 

11.8 

22 

Hetties* Gun _ 


41.8 

16. Liberaee (Tues. 9:30). 

..WNOK.. 

..Guild 

9.8 

26 

Bob Cumminga .. 

......WIS 

39,8 

17. Sherlock Holmes (Thurs. 7:30).... 

..WNOK.. 

..Guild 

9.3 

19 

Gray Ghost.. WIS 

39.9 



























































































































































































PITTSBURGH 


Stations: KDKA, WIIC. TV Homes: 432,900, Survey Dates: August 1-8, 1958. 


TOP TEN NETWORK SHOWS AV. TOP TWENTY SYNDICATED SHOWS AV. AY. TOP COMPETITION AV. 

RK. PROGRAM—DAY—TIME STA* RTG. RK. PROGRAM—DAY—TIME STA. DISTRIB. RTG. SH. PROGRAM STA. RTG. 

‘ I. Gnnsmoke (Sat. 10:00-10:30) .......KDKA 35.5 1. Official Detective (Sun. 10:30).WHC..... NTA . 22.4 51 What’s My Line....KDKA 21.9 

2. Ed Sullivan (Sun. 8:00-9:00) -.KDKA 30.3 2. O. Henry Playhouse (Tues. 8:30) .... KDKA...'. Gross-Krasne 22.0 52 Investigator .WIIC 20.5 

3. Have Gnn Will Travel (Sat. 9:30-10) .KDKA 30.2 3. Honeymoenera (Sat 7:00).WIIC.CBS 21.3 52 Lawrence Welk.KDKA 19.5 

4. Perry Mason (Sat 7:30-8:30)..KDKA 30.0 4. Sea Hunt (Fri. 6:30) ...KDKA.... Ziv 21.2 57 (News, Sports .WIIC 16.3 

5. Alfred Hitchcock (Sun. 9:30-10:00) ..KDKA " 27.9 ) NBC News.WIIC 16.3 

6. Decision (Sun. 10:00-10:30) .WIIC 26.2 5. Sheriff of Cochise (Fri. 7:00) ....... WIIC.NTA 20.9 52 (News, Sports..KDKA 19.7 

6. G. E. Theatre (Sun. 9:00-9:30) ......KDKA 26.2 ( CBS News...KDKA 19.3 

6. Life of Riley (Fri. 8:30-9:00) .......WIIC 26.2 3. State Trooper (Sat. 10:30) .KDKA_MCA 20.5 56 Joseph Cotten.....WIIC 16.0 

7. Oh Susanna (Sat. 9:00-9:30).KDKA 26.0 7. Boots & Saddles-(Fri. 7:30) .KDKA.... CNP. 20.3 49Zorro.WIIC 20.9 

8. Bob Crosby (Sat. 8:00-9:00) ........WIIC 25.2 8. Whistler (Wed. 7:30) ...KDKA.... CBS 19.5 49 Wagon Train ..WIIC 20.5 

8. Lassie (Sun. 7:00-7:30) ........KDKA 25.2 9. Star Sc The Story (Fri. 10:30).KDKA.... Off icial 19.2 48 Boxing .WIIC 20.9 

---— 10. Silent Service (Sat. 11:00) .. .KDKA.... CNP 19.0 59 ( Sat. Night News.WIIC 13.7 

TOP TEN MULTI-WEEKLY SHOWS AV. I Academy Theatre .... WIIC 12.7 

RK. PROGRAM—DAY—TIME STA. RTG. 11. Death Valley Days (Thurs. 7:30)_KDKA_U. S. Borax 18.9 51 Tic Tac Dough .WIIC 17.9 

- 12. Union Pacific (Tues. 7:00) ..WHC..... CNP 17.9 49 J News, Weather ....... KDKA 18.7 

1. tNews. at Noon (M-F 12:00-12:15) ...KDKA 20.8 ( CBS News .KDKA 18.3 

2. tNews, Wea. (M-F 7:00-7:15).KDKA 20.1 13. Badge 714 (Mon. 7:30) __WIIC..... .CNP 17.5 53 Robin Hood .KDKA 15.5 

3. *CBS News (M-F 7:15-7:30)....KDKA 19.V 14. Mama (Thurs. 6:30) .KDKA.... CBS 17.2 51 (News, Sports .WIIC 16.3 

4. *Guiding Light (M-F 12:45-1:00) ....KDKA 18.9. 1 NBC News...WIIC 16.7 

5. *Search For Tomorrow 14. Soldiers of Fortune (Thurs. 6:00) ... KDKA.... MCA 17.2 60 I Married Joan .WIIC 11.5 

(M-F 12:30-12:45) ....KDKA 18.3 14, Twenty Six Men (Thurs. 7:00).WHC.ABC 17.2 47 fNews, Weather ...KDKA 19.3. 

8. tNews, Tonight (M-F 11:00-11:15) ...KDKA 17.2 { CBS News.KDKA 19.7 

7. tGateway Studio 15. • Frontier Doctor (Fri. 6:00).KDKA_HTS 16.9 52 I Married Joan......... WIIC 15.9 

(T-Th ll:15-Signoff) ,.KDKA 16.2 18. Annie Oakley (Wed. 6:00).KDKA..,. CBS 16.2 59 I Married Joan.WIIC 11.5 

8. tFlorence Mason (M-F 12:15-12:30) .KDKA 15.9 18. Jungle Jim (Sat. 5:30)..WIIC.Screen Gems 16.2 55 Wyatt Earp .KDKA 13.5 

9. *NBC News (M-F 6:45-7:00)....WIIC 15.3 17. Harbor Command (Wed. 7:00).WIIC..... Ziv 15.9 42 (News, Weather.KDKA 22.3 

10. tNews, Sports (M-F 6:30-6:45) :..... WHC 15.1 { CBS News.KDKA 21.7 


SEATTLE 


Stations: KING, KIRO, KOMO, KTNT, KTVW. TV Homes: 258,900. Survey Dates: August 1-8, 1958. 


TOP TEN NETWORK SHOWS 


------ 1# 

1. Sugarfoot (Tues. 7:30-8:30)....KING 29.0 2. 

2. Wyatt Earp (Tues. 8:30-9:00)..KING 27.9 3. 

3. Maverick (Sun. 7:30-8:30)........... KING 25.7 4. 

4. Gnnsmoke (Sat. 8:00-8:30)......KIRO 25.2 5. 

5. Alfred Hitcheock (Sun. 8:30-9:00).... KIRO 23.9 5. 

8 . Decision (Sun. 9:00-9:30)....KOMO .23.5 8 . 

7. Disneyland (Wed. 8:00-9:00)_KING 2370 6. 

7. Lawrence Welk (Sat. 8:00-9:00).KING 23.0 7. 

8. Broken Arrow (Tues. 9:00-9:30)..... KING 22.9 8. 

8 . Thin Man (Fri. 8:30-9:00)....KOMO 22.9 

—--,-— 8. 

TOP TEN MULTI-WEEKLY SHOWS 9- 

---:— : --- 9. 

1. tEarly Edition (M-F 6:30-7:00).KING 16.1 10. 

2. ♦Mickey Mouse CInb (M-F 5:30-6:00). KING 14.0 10. 

3. tCartoon Festival (M-F 8-8:30 a.m.) .KING 12.8 10. 
4. , tStan Bbreson, Mise. (M-F 4:00-5:00).KING 11.7 

5. tDeadline (M-F 10:00-10:30).. ..KOMO 11.1 11. 

8 . *NBC News (M-Th 6:15-8:30)..KOMO 11.0 12. 

7.1 ♦Amec. Bandstand (M-F 2-2:30, 3-4).,KING 10.9 12. 

8 . tSheH News (M-Th 6:00-6:15).KOMO 10.7 

9. tQueen’s Movie (M-F 10-11:30 a.m.).KING 10.2 12. 

10. tWorid Today (M-F 10:30-11:00).KING 9.8 


Silent Service (Mon. 7:30). 

KING., 

..CNP 

22.5 

42 

Twenty Six Men. 

. KOMO 

14.9 

Highway Patrol (Thurs. 7:00). 

KOMO. 

. .Ziv 

22.2 

42 

It’s A Great Life. 

. KING 

11.9 

I Search For Adventure (Mon. 7:00) 

KING.. 

,*Bagnall 

20.7 

39 

Restless Gun . 

. KOMO 

16.2 

Sheriff of Cochise (Sat. 9:00)....... 

KING.. 

. .NTA 

20.2 

33 

Perry Mason . 

. KIRO 

21.5 

Badge 714 (Fri 10:00).. 

KING.. 

..CNP 

19.9 

45 

10 P.M. Report. 

. KIRO 

10.5 

Sea Hunt (Wed. 7:30)... 

KING.. 

..Ziv 

19.9 

34 

Father Knows Best .. 

. KOMO 

20.2 

Big Story (Thurs, 9:00)..... 

KIRO.. 

.. Official 

17.5 

31 

Andy Williams . 

KING 

14.2 

Honeymooners (Sun. 6:30).. 

KING.. 

..CBS 

17.5 

42 

Bachelor Father. 

. KIRO 

13.5 

Dial 999 (Sat. 9:30)..... 

KIRO.. 

..Ziv 

16.5 

31 

Andy Hardy Theatre. 

. KING 

15.2 

Annie Oakley (Thurs. 6:00). 

KING.. 

..CBS 

15.5 

46 

(Shell News . 

.'KOMO 

11.0 





7 NBC News . 

. KOMO 

11.2 

Gray Ghost (Sun. 6:00). 

KING.. 

..CBS 

15.5 

41 

Lassie .,. 

, KIRO 

13.9 

Depoy (Tues. 10:00)....... 

. KING.. 

. . Official 

14.9 

40 

Deadline . 

. KOMO 

14.0 

Twenty Six Men (Mon. 7:30). 

KOMO. 

.. ABC 

14.9 

28 

Silent Service . 

. .king 

22.5 

Death Valley Day* (Thurs. 8:00).... 

KOMO. 

.. U.S. Borax 

14.5 

24 

Playhouse 90 .... 

..ktro 

19.9 

Kingdom Of The Sea (Tues. 6:30)... 

.KOMO. 

.. Guild 

14.5 

37 

Early Edition .... 

. KTNG 

16.2 

Kit Carson (Tues. 6:00). 

.KING.. 

,.. MCA 

14.5 

45 

(Shell News . 

. KOMO 

10.7 






7 NBC News . 

, KOMO 

11.0 

Studio 57 (Fri. 7:00).,.. 

.KING.. 

., MCA 

13.5 

27 

Phil Silvers . 

. .KTRO 

16.5 

Man Galled X (Thurs. 9:30). 

.KTNT-. 

.. .Ziv 

12.5 ' 

21 

Richard Diamond ,... 

. KIRO 

16.2 

Susie (Mon. 6:00).. 

.KING.. 

.. TPA 

12.5 

40 

( Shell News . 

. KOMO 

11.7 






7 NBC News ..:. 

. KOMO 

12.0 

Target (Tues. 9:30).... 

.KIRO... 

.. Ziv 

12.5 

24 

Seafair Hilites 

. KOMO 

17.5 


PROVIDENCE 


Stations: WJAR, WPRO. TV Homes: 198,500. Survey Dates: August 1-8, 1958. 


TOP TEN NETWORK SHOWS 


1. - Gnnsmoke (Sat. 10:00-10:30') /....... WPRO 37.8 * 

2. - I’ve Got A Secret (Wed. 9:30-10:00). WPRO 33.8 

3. • Alfred Hitchcock (Sun. 9:30-10:00).. .WPRO 31.8 3. 

3. Ed Sullivan (Sun. 8:00-9:00)...WPRO 31.8 4. 

4. G. E. Theatre (Sun. 9:00-9:30)...WPRO 31.3 5 

4. Have Gun Will Travel (Sat. 9:30-10) . WPRO 31.3 

4. Tales of WeUs Fargo (Mon. 8:30-9)..WJAR 31.3 6 * 

5, Millionaire (Wed. 9:00-9:30).WPRO 30.3 7. 

8. Playhouse 90 (Thurs. 9:30-11:00).... WPRO 29.5 8. 

7.. Restless Gun (Mon. 8:00-8:30).WJAR 29.3 9 

TOP TEN MULTI-WEEKLY SHOWS - 10 * 

1. ' tSalty Brines Shack (M-F 6:00-6:30). WPRO 20.3 11. 

2. tEsso Reporter, Wea. (M-F 11-11:15).WJAR 19.2 12 

3. tNews, Wea. (M-F 11:00-11:15) .WPRO 15.3 \ ' 

4. *CBS News (M-F 6:45-7:00).WPRO ; 14.8 1/5 ‘ 

5. *Mickey Mouse Club (M-F 5:30-6:00). WPRO 14.4 13. 

6. tNews, Wea., Sports (M-F 6:30-6:45). WPRO 14.3 14. 

7. *Search For Tomorrow ie 

(M-F 12:30-12:45).WPRO 9.9 

8. 1-Big Show (T-F 11:15- Signoff)...... WJAR ’ 9.8 16 - 

8. *Guiding Light (M-W, F 12:45-1:00). WPRO 9.8 


8 . *Jack Paar Show (M-F 11:15 Signoffh WPRO 9.8 17. 

8. ♦Price Is Right (M-F 11-11:30 ajn.)..WJAR 9.8 


Highway Patrol (TUes. 10:30).. 
Death Valley Days (Mon. 7:00). 
Union Pacifio (Tues. 7:00).,... 
Honeymooners (Thurs. 7:00)... 

Sea Hunt (Sat. 10:30k.. ... 

Dr. Hudson (Tues. 7:00). 

Silent Service (Wed. 7:00). 

Sword of Freedom (Wed. 7:00). 
Harbor Command (Sat. 7:00).. 
Annie Oakley (Fri, 6:30)...... 

Twenty Six Men (Sun. 7:00).., 

My Hero (Mon. 7:00).. 

Star Performance (Tues. 10:30). 
Scotland Yard (Wed. 10:30).... 
Popeye (Sat. 8:00 a.m.) .....,. 
American Legend (Sun. 4:30).. 
Topper (Mon.-Fri. 9:15 a.m.)... 

Mr. District Attorney (M-F 1:00) 


,,:wjar... 

. .Ziv 

21.3 

60 

...WJAR... 

..U.S. Borax 

20.3 

59 

...WJAR... 

..CNP 

19.5 

52 

...WPRO.., 

.. CBS 

19.3 

52 

...WPRO... 

,. Ziv 

18.8 

58 

...WPRO.., 

.. MCA 

. 18.3 

48 

...WJAR... 

. . CNP 

17.8 

51 

...WPRO.., 

,. Official 

17.3 

49 

...WPRO... 

;. ziv 

16.8 

47 

...WJAR... 

. .CBS 

15.3 

54 

...WJAR... 

..ABC 

14.8 

42 

.. .WPRO... 

.. ^Official 

14.3 

41 

.. .WPRO.., 

,. .Official 

14.3 

40 

...WJAR... 

..ABC 

11.3 

38 

...WJAR... 

..AAPc 

10.0 

74 

...WPRO.., 

.. .Official 

9.3 

58 

...WPRO,. 

.. Telestar 

8.6 

71 

...WPRO.., 

.. Ziv 

6.8 

51 


Star Performance ..WPRO 14.3 

My Hero . WPRO 14.3 

Dr, Hudson .WPRO 18.3 

Disneyland ..WJAR 17.8 

Big Show .WJAR 13.5- 

Union Pacific .WJAR 19.5 

Sword of Freedom.WPRO 17.3 

Silent Service ..WJAR 17.8 

Tombstone Territory .. WJAR 19.3 

News, Sports, Weather WPRO 13.0 

CBS News .WPRO 13.5 

Lassie .WPRO 20.3 

Death Valley Days.WJAR 20.3 

Highway Patrol .WJAR 21.3 

Circle Theatre ..WPRO 11.3 

Hippity Hop...WJAR ' 4.8 

Youth Wants To Know. .WJAR 6.8 

Worlds Around Us.WJAR 2.0 

Hippity Hop ....WJAR 3.1 

Afternoon Show 7.WJAR 6.6 


JOPLIN, MO.-PITTSBURG, KAN. 


Stations: KOAM, KODE. TV Homes: 36,000. Survey-Dates: August 1-28, 1958, 


TOP TEN NETWORK SHOWS 




1. 

KODE 

46.3 

2. 

KOAM - 

46.3 

3. 

KODE 

44.8 

4. 

KOAM 

42.8 

5. 

KOAM 

41.8 

6. 

KOAM 

41.3 

7. 

KOAM 

40.0 

8. 

KOAM 

39.3 

9. 

KOAM 

37.8 

10. 

KOAM 

37.8 

11. 


TOP TEN MULTI-WEEKLY SHOWS 

tWea., News Final (M-F 10-10:15) ..KOAM 
tSports Today, We*. (M-F 6-6:15) ..KOAM 
tWld. News Tonight (M-F 6:15-6:30)' .KOAM 
•Queen For A Day (M-F 3:00*3:45) . .KOAM 

tPopeye (M-F 5:30-6:00) ..KODE 

tMy Little Margie (M-F 5:30-6:00) . .KOAM 
•Modem Romances (M-F 3:45-4:00) .KOAM 
tBogem-Autry, ttiae. (M-F 4:30-5:30). KOAM 
•Price !* Right (M-F 10-10:30 aim) .KOAM 
" •Could Be Yon (M-F 11:3642 noon) .KOAM 


- 12 . 

13. 

- 14. 

26.1 15. 

25.7 18. 

25.2 17. 

18.2 18. 
17.5 

15.3 19. 
14.9 

. 14.9 19. 
14.2 19. 

13.7 


Sea Hunt (Thurs. 8:00) ...KOAM., 

Whirlybirds (Tues. 8:30) .KOAM., 

Twenty Six Men (Mon. 9:30).. .KOAM., 

Highway Patrol (Wed. 8:30) -KOAM., 

Sheriff of Cochise (Mon. 6:30) ..KOAM. , 

Boots A Saddle* (Sat. 9:30)....KODE.. 

Harbor Command (Wed. 8:00) ...... KOAM.. 

Charlie Chan (Tues. 9:30) ...___ KOAM., 

Annie Oakley (Tues. 6:30) .. KOAM., 

Mike Hammer (Fri. 9:30) ___KOAM., 

Casey Jones (Fri 6:30) ..KOAM., 

Stu Erwin (Thurs. 6:30) ___ KOAM., 

Gray Ghost (Sat. 6:00) _..... KOAM.. 

Decoy (Wed. 7:00) .. KODE.. 

Little Theatre (Wed. 10:15)..KOAM.. 

Honeymooners (Tues. 9:30) ... .KODE.. 

Popeye (Mon.-Fri 5:30) ...KODE.. 

Boston Blaekfa (Fri40:00).KODE.. 

Mike Hammer (Thurs. 10:15).KOAM.. 

Mr. District Attorney (Tues. 8:30) .. KODE.. 
Official Detective (Tues. 10:15).KOAM.. 


.Ziv 

45.8 

77 

Verdict Is Yours.. 

. .KODE 

13.8 

.CBS 

40.8 

71 

Mr. District Attorney.. 

. .KODE 

16.3 

.ABC 

40.3 

8.0 

Capt. Gallant. 

. KODE 

10.3 

.Ziv 

38.8 

61 

I’ve Got A Secret. 

. .KODE 

24.8 

.NTA 

38.3 

79 

Robin Hood.. 

. .KODE 

10,3 

CNP 

35.3 

68 

Joseph Cotten. 

. .KOAM 

16.3 

.Ziv 

33.8 

62 

Millionaire . 

. .KODE 

20.3 

.TPA 

33.3 

63 

Honeymooners... 

. .KODE 

19.3 

.CBS 

29.5 

60 

Name' That Tune. 

..KODE 

19.3 

.MCA 

29.3 

61 

Personal Appearance .. 

. .KODE 

18.8 

.Screen Gem* 

27.8 

74 

Special CBS News. 

. .KODE 

9.8 

• Official 

22.8 

67 

Sergeant Preston.. 

. .KODE' 

11.3 

.CBS 

22.3 

78 

Jet Jackson . 

. .KODE 

6.3 

Official 

20.8 

42 

Disneyland ... 

..KOAM 

23.3 

• Sterling 

20.5 

63 

Janet Dean ... 

. .KODE 

12.0 

CBS 

19.3 

3? 

Charlie Chan... 

. .KOAM 

33.3 

AAP 

17.5 

53 

My Little Margie. 

. .KOAM 

15.3 

•Ziv 

16.8 

41 

(Wea., TV News Final. 
/ Jim Bowie. 

. .KOAM 
. .KOAM 

25.5 

23.5 

.MCA 

16.3 

58 

V Union Pacific . 

\ News-Weatber . 

. .KODE 
. KODE 

13 JO 
10.5 

Ely 

16.3 

38 

Whirlybirds .... 

. .KOAM . 

40.8 

.NTA 

16.3 

55 

C Dus Miss Brooks. 

£News & Weatfier- 

.KODE 
. KODE 

14.0 

125 




















































































































































































































P'Snmfr 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


For LOCAL Sponsorship-Never Before Such GUEST 

The Rosemary 1 


with the 




i-Lo’s Nels 




PREDIG 







Wednesday, October I, 1958 


P^RiEfr 


on R 
eisrh 


\\ 




Write, Wire, Phone 


mca tv 

FILM SYNDICATION 

America’s No. i Distributor of TV Film Programs 

598 Madison Avenue • New York 22, N.Y. • Plaza 9-7500 

and principal cities everywhere 





















































































































9 OUT OF 10 
POST’48 


IN MOVIELAND 


ALL STAR LINE-UP 


Post’ 48... that’s the key to the high ratings A.A.P.’s Movieland Group is scoring 
In market after market. You get 81 top pictures, all sure hits, from such major 
studios as RKO, 20th Century-Fox, UA, Universal, Korda and others. Featured 
are such big league stars as Ginger Rogers, Lilli Palmer, Bette Davis, Paulette 
Goddard, Rex Harrison, Joseph Gotten, Orson Welles. This'popular, saleable pack- 
age of great new pictures is first run in many areas. Put them to work for you. p,, “* ** '-<iiva u « pm*.. «. 


For full detain, write, wire, phone: 

a.a. 



me. 


Production* Corp. 



RADIO-TELEVISION 


October 1, 1958 


40 


Radio Reviews 


WITNESS 

(The Child Nobody Knows) 

With Sober* Lee Dodd, W. B. Cen¬ 
ter, James F. Moore, Dr. William 
Kiser; Dick McMlchael, Bow 
Hancock 

Prodacer: Tommy Thompson 
Director; Elmo Ellis ! 

30 Mins. Sub. (21) 10:30, pjn. | 
WSB, Atlanta t i 

This is the fourth in a dramatic 
series that has attracted nation-] 
wide attention and has won fori 
WSB two outstanding awards. . [ 
Employing the courtroom tech¬ 
nique of interrogation, the pro-i 
gram gets over the story with the; 
testimony of witnesses;. 

A double-barreled objective was 
achieved with this stanza, drawing 
attention to the work being done 
among retarded children and giving 
the Georgia chairman of the annual 
fund drive, Robert Lee Dodd, head 
football coach and athletic direc¬ 
tor of Georgia Institute of Tech¬ 
nology, opportunity to voice his 
plea for funds to carry on. the im¬ 
portant work among the handi¬ 
capped children, some of whom 
were heard on the program. 

Among '‘witnesses” heard were 
W. R. Center, director of Fair 
Haven School of retarded children; 
Dr. William Kiser, pediatric psy¬ 
chiatrist and member of Fairhaven 
School Screening Board, parents, 
teachers add children themselves. 

Topic of first program In ’'Wit¬ 
ness" was “Why the South Lost the 
Civil War” and won Westinghouse 
Award at Baltimore for Best His¬ 
torical program for Radio or Telef 
vision. Second program, subtitled 
“Ministers' Manifesto,” dealt with 
action of Atlanta pastors acknowl¬ 
edging Supreme Court decision as 
law of the land, and won Ohio 
State U. award as best public af¬ 
fairs program. Third segment ex¬ 
plored Juvenile Delinquency in: 
Atlanta. ^ 

This is the type of program that 
makes friends for a radio station 
that is alert to public needs and 
seeks to serve its community. 
WSB*s personnel did a first, class 
job of presentation. Luce. 


Radio Followup 


Johnny Johnston' 

Johnny Johnston, originating 
from Jack Silverman’s Interna¬ 
tional Casino (nee the Old Rou- 
mania), via WMGM, is another in 
the post-midnight deejay sweep- 
stakes in New York, Leone’s is now 
an origination point and others are 
in the making. The juvenile has_a 
literate, suave style, interlards his 
chitchat and interviews with occa¬ 
sional vocals to guitar accomp, and 
looms as a pleasant contrast on the 
Gotham airwaves to the nocturnal 
pundits, flying saucers-detectors, 
cacaphonous and longhair deejays, 
and the bleeding heart chanty 
pitches. 

Incidentally, "Big Joe” Kosen- 
field Jr., prime exponent of the 
Happiness Exchange over WABC- 
after a longtime stint for WMGM, 
N.Y.—has a 3-6 aun. stand-in in the 
person of Jim Gordon. He’s a pa-; 
tient gent with the proper knack of 
pacing the weltschmerz that is 
paraded over the WABC mike. He’s 
goad contrast also to the some¬ 
times overly saccharine “Big Joe,” 
which is probably a camouflage 
many a time for the screwballs-in- 
the-night who get on the Ameche 
with ribald calls. Even an insom¬ 
niac, listening with half-an-ear, 
detects that Rosenfield’s welcome- 
stranger telephonitis isn’t all 
svveetness-and-light. Abel 


The Mr. & Mrs. Teams 

Dorothy Kilgallen, sans Dick 
Kollmar, and Tex McCrary, sans 
Jinx Falkenburg. have been carry¬ 
ing on over WOK-Radio in the ab¬ 
sence of their respective vis-a-vis. i 
Bennett Cerf and Earl Blackwell, 
were good guests for Dorothy Me 
Dick’s aJn. frolic the first twe of 
the three days Kollmar was in 
London attendant to the prospec¬ 
tive importation of “La Plume de 
Ma Tante,” and McCrary’s literate 
guests, both afternoon and pre- 
midnight, while his wife has been | 
ill. likewise accounted for them-] 
selves weiL Cerfs literati Inside 1 
stuff was good and some of it start- ] 
lingly informative (the stick mag 
which okayed earthy language, and 
a book which went to press with 
its last chapter omitted^ because it 
was lost in transit); and Blackwell’s 
party talk was a harkbafek to the 
glamour aura. 

Wisely the Mr. it Mrs. teams 
play down the cafe society stuff— 
they have taken too much, ribbing' 
on that score in the past—because j 
they cater too much to the' work¬ 
aday hausfrau set, although a little 


of the glam chatter is obviously 
good . copy; however, Blackwell’s 
Celebrity Service tie made it a 
plausible and a natural. ,WOH 
seems, to have the corner on the 
Mr. it Mrs, teams—besides the 
Kollmars and McCrarys, the Fitz¬ 
geralds and the McCanns are regu¬ 
lar*. . Abet 


‘Loss Raiser’ 

55S Continned from, past 25 
stamp sales have doubled, accord¬ 
ing to unofficial estimates. 

With ‘The Lone Banger” a firm¬ 
ly ensconced British tv character 
for several years, via its showing 
on BBC-TY, the English want to 
adopt the same promotion cam¬ 
paign In an effort to spurt their 
sales of Government sayings cer¬ 
tificates in similar fashion. Though j 
Moore himself may not be able to 
make personal appearances, the 
way is clear for the British to use 
the campaign. 

“Peace Patrol” involves heavy 
Treasury Dept, participation. Some 
$000,000 TD brochures and an 
equivalent number of “Peace Pa¬ 
trol” ' membership cards, along 
with 750,000 posters, have gone to 
50,000 U.SL schools and 20*000 post 
offices. Treasury Dept has made 
500 prints of two promotional films 
to be shown in schools, one a 10- 
minute color film of the kickoff 
ceremony in July at the Washing- 
[ ton Monument, the other a regular 
“Long Ranger” episode with the 
savings stamp promotional inserts 
.supplied by Wrather. General 
Mills and American Bakeries, 
*‘Lohe Ranger” sponsors, are back¬ 
ing tfi^ campaign with “Peace Pa¬ 
trol” Promotional spots on the 
CBS-TV telecasts of the show it¬ 
self. 

Apart from spurting sales, the 
“Peace Patrol” has racked up some 
hefty press for both “The Lone 
Ranger” and the Treasury, with 
plenty of wire service coverage and 
Wall St. Journal and New York 
Times editorials. 


Dailies Vs. TV 

, Continued from peso 1 
vested interests by saying that 54% 
of the Buick shoppers said that 
television did the most to interest 
them in Iodfcmg at the new models 
of the car as opposed to 18% for 
newspapers and 28% for maga¬ 
zines. 

McCann-Erickson made its own 
cost comparison study which far 
vored television. In the McCann, 
study it was found that 1,000 tv 
viewers could be reached for $L2g 
while the cost of reaching the same 
number of newspaper readers was 
almost double. 

The McCann - Erickson report 
concluded by saying that as a* con¬ 
sequence of the “effectiveness of 
television with Biiick and its low 
relative cost of reaching people, 
you can see why television will 
play a big part in advertising ’THE 
CAR.’” 

The Newspapers Advertising Ex¬ 
ecutive Assn, struck a blow at both 
McCann-Erickson and television in 
general by calling on members of 
the association to call on ipcal 
Buick dealers. In a message to 
members of the MAE A, Charles 
Lord, president of the association 
asked them to Call on local Buick 
dealers for a “grassroots” ap¬ 
proach. Lord charged in his mes¬ 
sage that the facts used in compar¬ 
ing television and newspaper costs 
were inadequate and that the asso¬ 
ciation could prove that news¬ 
papers deliver more audience than 
television. Lord implied that news¬ 
papers were being shown in an 
unfair light as far as cost, audi¬ 
ences and impact was concerned. 

. At McCann, it was learned that 
'Marion Harper Jr., president of the 
agency, was set to meet today 
fWed.) with* executives of both 
the Bureajy of Advertising and 
NAEA. The prevailing opinion at 
the agency was that Biiick could 
spend their money as they saw fit* 
regardless of any organization.: 

Even with the studies, Buick this 
year spent a record amount in 
newspaper space in introducing the 
new model. 

While the newspaper reps were 
hollering “foul,” the Television 


PTS&TSft 


Bureau of Advertising stated Mon¬ 
day morning that they had con¬ 
ducted a survey of their own which 
they hoped to present to McCann- 
Erickson. The Bureau, which is 
-not opposed to taking a swing at 
newspaper interests, found that be¬ 
fore the Bob Hope show which in¬ 
troduced the new models on tele¬ 
vision, 18% of |bg' people inter¬ 
viewed. liked tbfigSew cars while 
62% had no onWon. After the 
Hope special, 53KV>f the people 
who saw the sho wjjjte ed the models 
while only 16% XfgFno opinion. 

A spokesman fJ§|be TvB further 
charged that th|f§iftewspaper ap¬ 
proach was“typical and only after 
something has happened does the 
NAEA act.”- 


Mpk. Ratisg War 

Continued from, page M aas 
nick and Universal International 
and part of the M-G-M and RKO 
pictures released to tv.. 

WTCN-TY calls* its pictures 
“firs^riins” because they’ve never 
been seen on video hereabouts be¬ 
fore heing^shown by it 

Under Don Swartz’s management* 
KMSP-TV is going in heavily on 
locally produced shows 'to supple¬ 
ment its 9 p.m. feature^ pictures. 
On Oct. 10, too, it becomes a part 
of the NTA “network” and its pro¬ 
gramming will include the latter’s 
“This Is Alice” (the hew Desl-Lu 
series), “Man Without a Gun”, and 
“How to Marry a Millionaire.” This 
is' expected to speed up still 
further the four Twin Cities com¬ 
mercial tv station hectic competi¬ 
tion and fight for nighttime 
viewers. 

At this stage the KSTP-TV (NBC) 
10 p.m. local half-hour news, 
weather and sports program con¬ 
tinues to have a championship rat¬ 
ing, well ahead of. other competing 
news shows, and the half-hour syn¬ 
dicated films and hour Jack Paar 
show that follow prior to a brief 
midnight, news program winding 
up the evening also boast high rat¬ 
ings. 


Breslow 

Continued from page 24 SSSSS 

flee and take the responsibility if 
: we’re wrong. 

“If a script’s not right, the pro¬ 
ducer has to rewrite it. If a di¬ 
rector runs short, as has happened* 
we’ve got to write additional 
scenes and have them filmed. If 
an actor is miscast, we’ve got to 
see to it that he’s handled right. 
The writer doesn’t give a damn, 
about the series, and I’ve never 
seen a director turn down a bad 
script. He’ll say it’s great know¬ 
ing that it’s lousy, because he 
doesn’t care. I’ve never seen a di¬ 
rector make a cut, even though he 
has a right to. He’s too busy with 
his next assignment. 

;“The producer is the one who 
has to care and who has to make 
sure it’s right. He’s the one with 
all the responsibility, all the work; 
a director spends two days on the 
show and then he’s doing another 
show somewhere else. The produ¬ 
cer is the man who stays with all j 
the problems day after day and < 
night After night. 

“Yet, of them all—writers, df- j 
rectors, actors — tiir producer is 
the only ©he who doesn’t get any 
residuals. He’s overworked, unrec¬ 
ognized and unrewarded. Yet, he’s 
the one person who deserves <a cut 
of the residuals, apd.some day he’s 
going to get it. If the others didn’t' 
get residuals, I wouldn’t have any 
[beef, but as long as writers and 
I directors are getting them, I think 
the producer is entitled to as much 
or'more.” 

Breslow recognizes the fact that 
some producers who bring in an 
idea sometimes get a piece of the 
property, either in the form of-a 
percentage of the profits or. of the 
gross. Yet these cases are few and 
[far. between, he states, and tfie 
staff producer nonetheless has the 
same responsibilities and strains 
Without the rewards; 


WINN’s 600G Sale 

Louisville, Sept. 30. 

Local radio, station WINN is to 
be sold -for a reported $600,000 to 
a group composed of present g.m. 
and v.p. Glen Harmon, three other 
local men, and French Eason, Chi¬ 
cago. FCC has been asked to ap¬ 
prove the sale to the new corpora¬ 
tion known as WBC t Inc. 


From the Production Centres 

. Contained from pace N — 

hospital with a ruptured spleen. He came out of Surgery okay . . . 
“Bozo the Clown” series will carry a “created by” credit line for Alan 
Livingston, NBC-TV program veepee in Burbank, but it’s not for his 
network. Benb Kaufman sewed up-the syndication rights . . . ABC’s 
division veepee, Earf Arisen, says there’s nothing wrong with jtv that 
some good old fashioned showmanship can’t cure . .. Abigail Van Burn 
(-“Dear Abby”) won’t leave her Bay City home even for occasional 
tapes in Hollywood so her deal with ABC-TY is cold. 

IN CHICAGO ... 

Longtime newscaster Jack Angell bumped at WNBQ owing to cut¬ 
backs in local segs on NBC’s /Today.” Angell continues to do “City 
In Sound” on WMAQ . . « Bookseller Stuart Brent adding a second 
hook show on WBKB, this one for the kiddies, on Saturday mornings 
during the pre-Christmas season . . . WGN-TY tossed tugboat junket 
for press cni. Mbhday (29) to launch its “Tugboat Annie” series . . . 
Studs Terkel revivi ng h is old k*dto click, ^Wax Museum,” across the 
board daytimes on WFMT « ; . Leu Sehleascr will be coordinating di¬ 
rector for WBBM-WBBM-FM live stereocast of Lyric Opera next Fri¬ 
day (9) , . Clifton Utley' tapped for news-commentary strip on 

WMAQ by Oklahoma Oil. Also being mulled for new strip assignment 
and a Saturday berth on WNBQ ... Comedy writer Stan Divis script¬ 
ing soundtrack on WBBM-TV televersion of WBBM’s long-running 
“Gold Coast Show” , . * Dtek Wlftwer dropped from network sales 
division of Rational Telefilm Associates here 

IN WASHINGTON . . . 

Bob Keeshan* CBS’ “Capt, Kangaroo,” arriving here Friday (3) to 
perform at the National Press Club’s annual Father-Daughter Night 
... Michael Marlow of CBS News here-rind a bachelor—is in charge 
of the dads and daughters program . Clyde M. Hgat, vice president 
for engineering of WTOP^has been named to the hoard of directors 
[of the local Society at Professional Engineers . .- . WBC-TV’s Inga 
Bnndrold is off for Eiearborn, Mich., to give her view* oh styling and 
interior design ofthe hew lord automobile tine at the company’s in¬ 
vitation . . . Art Lamb, emcee of WRC-TV’s “In Our Town,” won a 
local fiower-arranging contes t. .. John X. Ward is a new account ex¬ 
ec for WTOP-TV sales . . . WWDC announced thlt its recently pur¬ 
chased Jacksonville, Fla., statio n, WM BR, will start 60-second editor¬ 
ials on local civic issues. Here, WWDC editorials have sometimes set 
off controversy 

IN LONDON ... 

Sara Leighton has joined the panel of BBC-TV’s “What’s My Line?” 
... Paul Bobeson made his second commercial tv appearance when he 
headlined the bill of Associated Television's “Sunday Night At The 
Palladium” (28). Also on the program, were, the Kalin Twins and Jay 
Marshall ... The Morse Code signal for the letters “ABC” has been 
Worked into musical form by composer Erie Spear, who has written' 
new incidental music for ABC-TV’s “Armchair Theatre” series . . . 
BBC-TV will begin airing “The Steve Allen Show” weekly from next 
Sunday (5). . 

in boston ... 

Ed Pearle, former asst sales promosh mgr. WNAC-TV, abjtled to 
; WBZ-WBZA where he took over Monday (29) as pubrelationsdiTector 
. . * WBZ nabbed crowd of 35,000 with its promosh block party In 
[Brockton Friday (26) with Lester Lanin Orch, Joni James and Jerry 
[ Vale . . WNAC-TV hosted Spring Byington jof. “December Bride” on 

I Hub visit. . . Food Enterprises inked for full hour seg of “Cinema 7” 

! on WNAC-TV . .. Duncan MacDonald hosted w. k. Dr. Sara Jordan on 
[her “Yankee Home And Food Show” ,,. Pete McGovern ankled WMEX 
[ where he Was gen, mgr. . . . Harriet Baker, formerly with WEZE, now 
jat XBOX, D allas . . . Joe Cootansa, WHDH-TV pub. rep., married to 
Val Canino, WHDH Sales Dept., and couple off on two week Florida 
[honeymoon *. . .. WBZ-TV newscaster Arch MacDonald presented pin 
symbolizing 2&year association withWestinghouse .. . ..Bay Hubbard, 
[former asst, program mgr. WBZ-TV, appointed program manager 
KPIX, San Francisco. 

jfiV PHILADELPHIA . . . 

WIP promotion-pubticity director Sam.Serota, with station 17 years, 
has resigned (26) . * . Joe Grady and Ed Hunt, recently with the shut¬ 
tered WVUE, take over WRCV-TV morning spot (5:30-10 a.m.) from 
Vince Lee who is now on staff and weekend announcing. Deejay team 
swing into “more adult listening” from their former rock ’n’-roll 
sessions . .. Gene Milner, WIP and Sid Mark, WHAT-FM, staged mem¬ 
orial broadcasts for Harvey Husten, founder of the Red Hill Dili, Jer¬ 
sey jazz showcase . . . American Hotel Assn, at its meeting, at tha 
Sheraton Hotel, selected Ann Sothern as “Our Favorite Hotel Execu¬ 
tive of the Year,” in tie-in with her new tv series 


Morris (Win.) Plan 

Continued from page 21 a—— 


Californians,” Zane Grey Theatre, 
$64,000 Question, “Treasure Hunt.” 

Those curious enough to want to 
know how much all this represents 
in dollars will have to dotheir own 
figuring. At Morn* they don’t like 
to throw around millions, willy- 
hilly. In their conservative way 
they’d prefer mot to hoist a figure 
for a 39-week deal until it’s firm. 
Said one of them, “what if we gaVe 
you a figure for 39 weeks and the* 
I show was cancelled after 13? It- 
would be a false set of. values.” 

' The Morrismen are proud .of 
their record,,, more so because it 
represents an increase of three- 
sales ; over last year, which 
was the banner season in all its 
history. And, privately, it Is well 
out front of its rival, MCA. Many 
of the other packager-sellers may 
vie for contention behind Morris 
but they are also concerned with 
production or ownership In the 
[properties. Morris has no owner¬ 


ship or participating interest, other 
than its commissionable toe* in any 
of the shows it sold. 

But, the -point is made By Abe 
Lastfogel, reigning head .of the 
House pf Morris, thgt packagit sales 
are but one facet of thf kjtoncy 
operation. The company, sms^built 
.on talent representation is 

still, a primary funejiom ^jr |alent 
it could mean Garry MoOre, an em¬ 
cee; Fred Coe, a producer; Peter 
Lawford, an actor;'Martin Manulis, 
ty head of 20th-Fox production, or 
writer* by* the-score..v ■- ; 

.. The point may be raised by com¬ 
petitors that sibby w ot tUe shows 
claimed by Morris, were. *ales- 
abetted by the producing cotnpa- 
hies. This Is hot ‘ minimized at 

Morris, but none c$B. (^Ibrrel with 
the' indisputable fact that they 
were called in to make the sale and 
are being paid for that service. In 
many insttfhees theyVcohceived the 
show idea, integrated the creative 
element* and made‘It ready for 
piloting. 




1958 


1 PUbmEft 



^ "Breaktjpugh — 
J)' the.ABtgtelevision 
% network rs : the first to 
break through. to the V 
fr* great pool of Canadian •' 
talent to create truly ^ 
: r^ superior live dramatic pro- * 
J‘V ductions. j 

f * ."Breakthrough”—i&lhe first ^ 
fj of four live 60 -minu.te* r tffamas h. 
—the "Encounter” series—to 
be seen on the full ABC network 
T i}’ on Sundays through October. [ ? 
These dramas will be originated . £ 
jv " and produced in Toronto by the r ^ 
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation- ; ] 

;** recognized the world over as a leader 
in original ’and quality television 
production at realistic cost r 


For this“Breakthrough”--a salute to .3 

ABC!! 

V/f 

Canadian- Broadcasting -Corporation t 










KAN^minsioTr 


42 


WeAttsfleT, October 1 , 1 * 5 * 


THenskm Renews 


the better rDragnrt” segments in 
some time. 

NBC ought to toe sane second 
thought* about totting ^Dragnet" 
go iydefaulL.Shift to ah earifr 
evening lime period. along "with 
the web’s inability to sell mart 
than the alternate week. spells 
trouble lor the show, -end it de¬ 
serve* a better late. £3utn. 


GENERAL MOTORS PRESENTS 
(Power to Destroy) 

Witt Douglas Raise, Jtkm Dralnfe, 

JIM Teeter, William Dell, James 

Deehan, iw Berry, .otters 
Executive Producer: Ease Ijmigh 
Director: Paul Aim end 
Writer: DeugHe Jackses 
60 3 Qm* Sum. *39 JA 
GENERAL MOTORS 
CBC-TY* irom TOrouto 
{MacLaren) 

In teeoff of third season on Ca¬ 
nadian fv. General Motors is in' 
for 39 weeks over 40 stations of: 
the Canadian Broadcasting Carp,, 
with Jour of the series in October 
to be ^carried live by the American' 
Broadcasting network from To-; 
ronto. Under the taut Erection of ; 
Pan! Afanend, the opening ’Tower ! 
to Destroy” was a suspenseful ac¬ 
tion-thriller. by Douglas Jackson,! 
Montreal insurance agent, this the; 
latter’s first tv play to be produced. | 

Based on a news episode in- 
which a crazed bank bandit has : 
sticks of dynamite strapped against: 
his body and threatens the locked-] 
in myryay »r and assembled; 

customers to blow all sky-Mgh un- : 
less his wishes are accepted, the 
disguised holdup man was expertly 
played by Douglas Baine who "is: 
not afraid to die” (Seems that, ; 
after wife’s confession to police,: 
the man has mentally collapsed 
after hi* two children have been, 
turned ta death). It’s powerful 
writing and direction, enhanced by! 
the bandit’s planting of three time! 
bombs about the -city T Including; 
one in the locker room of Toronto’s ■ 
Unioh'Station, set to go off at the* 
five ©’dock commuting rush hour.’ 

From tightly-plotted exigencies 
of a bark interior’s holdup to the j 
summoning of fire-fighters and! 
ambulances, plus the desertion of : 
a railway station and the dealing': 
out of. hotels, bus and deport tej> 
minds, "Power to Destroy” was a j 
vivid documentary, with tribute 
paid at the finish Ip the eoopera- 
tion of Toronto’s metropolitan po¬ 
lice force. (Action, of course,: 
could he told in any rity). 

As the crazed bank bandit and: 


Merit's 

COFFEE 

TIME 



I tiMM «■* ty «r: ear noose show, 

DICK CLMUT SHOW, VAHL WJftCttELL 
SHOW. WS»!C SAN. 

Hi EMMTfl AVENUE 
NEW YOKE. N. Y. 


WeoseNote NEW Address; 
TED HOYD INCOftPOIATED 
Jtf MADISON AVENUE 
NEW YORK 22. NEW YOKE 
#IUuWN 


the police _ 
ties the time bontt from hli Sec¬ 
ond World Ware x pcrience, tte co- 
starred Douglas Ha bit and John 
Drtinte were excellent hi their x*^ 
spective roles,.this afro going for 
Jill Poster as the hysterical wife 
of the psychopathic holdup man.. 

. McStay. 


fund MaBcd 14 MCA 

The (donut_ r __ 

reception and ravesfront trade re¬ 
viewers at riuh Tetteart waa well 
- of lorteoua dottee, 


CARROLL RIGHTER 


Director: Larry Were® 

34 Mu. Sam, H:tt fJL 
JIM CLINTON ■ 

KTLA, Hollywood 

The very fact that Carroll Bigh- 
ter’s syndicated -column runs in 100 
papers and that horoscopes sell in 
the millions would clearly indicate 
there’s 'a vast audience for this 
excursion into star gazing. In Car- 
roll Bighter, KTLA couldn't have 
chosen a more reputable authority 
on the subject Otherwise, it’s 
wholly unlikely that Bob Cum-: 
mings would have been his first , 
guest and confessed that Bighter 
converted, him from a doubter of 
Astrology to a believer. 

That la femme is a sucker for 
-fortune-telling by the 12 signs of 
the zodiac is no revelation. They’re 
the ones . who ' buy those little 
charts, keep gypsies in garish gear 
and poke around in tea leaves. 
This, then, should give Bighter a 
built-in audience and a . growing 
.one in the weeks to come. That 
it's purely femme bait is- not to be 
disputed and. rite sponsor, Jim 
Clinton, used his time to sell ap¬ 
parel to the distaffers. If a male 
should happen to be trapped* his 
-discomfort won’t be acute. 5 

As astrologian to the Hollywood : 
stars, his repute is not disputed.'; 
That he knows Ms subject fore! 
and aft* is at once evident when - 
he took off on a long dissertation 
of-what the stars can do for both 
the happy and troubled. The stars,, 
celluloid type, be calls by their : 
signs. Name a luminary and he 1 
immediately answers the date, of - 
their birth and their zodiac symbol* 

Bighter is not a showman and] 
makes no attempt at coloring his; 
material. He’s forthright and un¬ 
smiling, takes his subject seriously. ! 
The only line be. punched was,; 
"stars impel, they do not compel.” \ 
He also pointedly objected to; 
“Cancer” and those bom under! 
this sign he prefers to call "moon' 
children.” Toward the dose there ; 
was a pitch for Forecast horoscopes' 
at 50c acopy. The gal who did] 
the selling for Jim Clinton must’ve; 
been bora under a new star called 
Fluff. 

It’s a Raymond Keene produc¬ 
tion directed by Larry Pierce. 

Helm. : 


and fashion sews, knitted smooth¬ 
ly together hyekpurt c o mme n t ary 
. of Phyllis H*ne*,fashlon editor of 
Herald a nd fasfa iongdlrectoc of tv 
mow, • VHDftHs personalities 
like newscaster Jta Britt (former¬ 
ly of ABC-TTso^R Star CKOD, 
gagsters Ray Dorejtand Jess Cain, 
Suppedf*vi Bohjehttie andfash; 
ion carter Jull Dane were worked 
neatly Into scrlpt far htt* of burt- 
hess that introduced various fash¬ 
ion segments and aim gave show 
needed change of pace And variety. 
All scored effectively despite brev¬ 
ity of parts, but red rtars ofahow 
were, by design, the fashions them¬ 
selves. 

Thanks to'color and dick pro¬ 
duction, fashions never store show¬ 
cased better in Boston. Guy. 


FASHION HERALD OF 195S l 
Witt Phyllis Hanes, Jim Britt, Hayi 

Dorey, Jess Cain* Bob Cottle,! 

JuU Dane 

Pro d u ce r: Sidney Pike 
Director: Bob Klnkead 
» Mins.. Sat <1J> E pm. 

BOST ON HERALD 
WHDH-TV, Barton (color) 

Tint tv nabbed its bigg est Bo s- 
fon boost since all color WHDH-: 
TV went on the air last Nov., when: 
same station beamed Huh video’s: 
first hour long fashion show in fall; 
hue on Saturday (13). Telecast 
gras triumph in every sense. Fash¬ 
ion show format proved made to 
order for tmfeasting, as spectacular 
collection of colorful fall fashions: 
gave the video spectrum a thorough 
workout. 

Color values of gowns and pro¬ 
duction? showed excellent contrast 
in black and white and were drama¬ 
tically eye rilling on color sets. 
That’s where local color tv got 
its big boost, thanks to sponsoring 
Boston Herald, wMch put on show 
to plug its annual Fashion Herald 
supplement distributed with Sun¬ 
day (14)' editions. Herald rented' 
port! Sidney Hill Country drib in 


YOU AND YOUR HEALTH 
With Ray Moore, Dr*. Listen 
Bishop, Willis J. Hurst, J. G. 
-■ Barrow 

-Producer-Director; JqhnCene 
36 Mins.; Toes., l#:3t pw. 

FIRST NATIONAL BANK, AT¬ 
LANTA 

WSB-TV, Atlanta 
Devoid of dramatics, but never 
dull, this kickoff segment is a 
series of 13 stanzas proved to be 
an effective exploration of Bis that 
attack the heart. Ray Moore, versa¬ 
tile spieler for WSB-TV equally at 
home as. a medical science mod¬ 
erator as he is at a sporting event 
or as a newscaster, kept the show’s 
pace lively, while eliciting the 
informative answers from the par¬ 
ticipating medicos, all ticker spe¬ 
cialists, of course. 

Bank sponsoring program gets 
in commercial licks prior to and 
at closing of showuikeeping mum 
otherwise. Ditto njecedits for co¬ 
operating Emory .JJniv. School of 
Medicine and tbi^Fulton County 
Health Society. .. ^ 

Featured was ^ttziinplified film 
from Georgia Heart Assn.* .plus 
brief use of a blackboard and elec¬ 
trocardiogram machine. These sup¬ 
plemented discussion of angina 
pectoris and the more serious 
coronary thrombosis. 

Under adroit verbal leading by 
Moore, medics stressed value of 
rest, oxygen and other medication, 
Doctors also warned that self- 
diagnosis of chert pains Is virtually 
impossible and made it clear Diet 
we’ve still got a lot to learn about 
heart disease. 

Next show Tuesday (23) will deal 
■The whale medical gamut will be 
covered. Using the first program 
as a yardstick these shows should 
garner plenty of audience. 

Luce. 


ABC Spatial* 

Continued Irom pate 23 sssS 

planning exec, dreamed up the 
kidspec and brought in the BH 
Baird .puppets to co-star with Car¬ 
ney. Should the bankrofler come 
across. Bert Sheveloye will be* as¬ 
signed producer, to bring together 
a "major symphony orchestra” to 
play the Robert Bussell. Bennett 
orchestration of the Prokofief clas¬ 
sic. Web is lining up a lyricist to 
put original book , and words to 
-the -stanza. By itself, the package 
will cost $82*000. 

Incidentally* it’s a busy season 
for actor Carney. _ He starred in 
’Harvey” a week Monday, and 
is definitely sector the Qrt 5 
Dinah Shore stnjjpton NBC and 
later for one of lh^Alfred Hitch¬ 
cock P resents” ^^gas on CBS. 

jteene, . N.H.-^mnk B. Estes 
has resigned as^Yfcepresident of 
WKNE here andTfes purchased ma¬ 
jority control of WKXL in Con¬ 
cord, Howard E. Wheelock, asso-' 
Ciated with WKNE since 1942, haS 
been appointed general manager. 


King-Size Shares of Audience for 


ii 

15 % SYEACUSE . 


CASEY JONES” 

SCtANTON ..,05% lAKEESftfLD .. 04^ RICHMOND .. 

Source, ARB • > • 1958. 



GEMS, INC. 

TELfVfSIM SMNNAtY OF COtNUlA *ICTJfftES COffP. 




731 m 
CHfCAeO 


HOUYWttOD MiAMl HOUSTON TOftONTO 


Upcoming Installments of "She Open Mind” series dealing with"TV— 
Its Impart no American Ufa” oo TOCA-TV will lnchids on Oct. 9 
"TV and RJitics” with'Lloyd Whttebrook, Joclc Elliott and Pflnceton. 
prof Zric Goldmaa as *ttf ; 

The Oct ll^ptogram. when "The Open Mind** moves to 2 pm s will 
be "TV and th* Couxtroom'Vwith Robert JX Swezey, of WDSU, New 
Orleans* and possihtif Morris Ernst at the mike.. : ° 

rnr andihe Moulding of Public Opinion” Is slated for Ocf It with 
Nick Samstag of Time magazine and John Cunningham of Qi|nidng- 
ham Ac Walsh on the panel 

Rlchgrd D. Heffner, moderator of the series, is also trying to get 
Elmo Boper mm. third member of tte panel. ^ 

' "Hemo 1b# Magnificent,” special 60-minule program about blood, 
circulation add the beeri, seen over CBS-TV In March, 1957, as one- 
of the Bell Telephone Science Series programs, will be a recipient of 
one of the four 195$ Howard W* Blakeriee Awards of the American 
Heart Assn. Presentation will be made at ljuncheon at N.Y. Athletic 
Club Saturday. (4). Program was produced, written and directed by 
Frank Capra ana featured Richard Carlson and Dr. Frank 'Baxter. 
Awards will be bestowed by Dr. Robert W. Wilkins, prexy of AHA. 
Charles Van Doren, NBQ. compentator and Columbia Univ. Enriish 
instructor, will be guest speaker. 


TV Fillemv 

Continues Iron, past XI 

Harris are okay in support. Alien 
TL Miner’s direction, like the story 
by Gloria Saunders and Dkk Carr, 
is undistinguitted. Production 
values are lavish; a lot-of coin 
w^nt into this pilot. What it lacked 
was heart Daku. 


Turning Point 

A performance of exceptional 
merit was turned In by Hariy 
Townes as a schizophrenic in "Con¬ 
flict” on the anthology aeries 
"Turning Point” over NBC-TV Sat¬ 
urday <27). Produced by Jack Baity 
and Dan Enrightseveral years ago: 
in conjunction with the National 
Assn, for Mental Health and writ¬ 
ten by Reginald Bose with deep 
feeling and skill as the pilot film 
for a proposed series, it apparently 
never got off the ground. 

Agencies reportedly resisted 
buying it-because of its stark real¬ 
ism and intricate aspects of psy¬ 
chiatry. Sidney Lumet, in 'total 
sympathy with the objectives of 
the program, also contributed a 
senitive job in the direction of. 
“Conflict” ; 

Action of "Conflict” Was set in 
New York City and both indoor and 
outdoor shots were particularly 
effective. Story -dealt with a mar-: 
ried .35-year-old bookkeeper who: 
underwent a mental breakdown 
and with the aid of a sympathetic 
psychiatrist waa put back on the 
road to recovery. There were mov¬ 
ing scenes of the patient’s mute 
withdrawal from society and of bis ; 
piteous struggles to be released 
from unbearable tensions. How the * 
psychiatrist with assistance from 
the patient’s wife* aided in the vic¬ 
tim’* reeoverywasatrUliant testi-i 
monial to the progress taking place 
In mental beutt. 

Nor waa Beee’s efcript sprinkled 
with too way seychlatxto terms 
and. It eonaequeutiyuiade formore 
effective mam editoririizing in 
briislf of the asentid patient’s 

plight. H washJgbtytrtltolpropa¬ 
ganda that meNett^ viewer sit up 
and ponder tong sttm 1 Credits 
bad-laded from the video screen. 

Townes,- in particular, scored 
heavily in the priaripal rate. Ger¬ 
ald Herschfeld,who did the photog¬ 
raphy on **Comliet,~ also contrib¬ 
uted Immeanuaidr te the filnft 
impact- AU tifid, the film undoubt¬ 
edly gave an UBpertaitt aaairt to 
the undKstanding of contemporary 
psychiatric healing. 

More stock video efforts would 
go a long way toward lifting the 
veil of psycMatrifc ignorance in the; 
country. Sons. 


TV Station Vie For 
flerali-Trib Serrices 
Oo Bectim Cormge 

Seems the N.Y* Herald-Tribune’s 
video. services ars in great de¬ 
mand. The ayem. paper’s head¬ 
quarters and political staff are be¬ 
ing sought by three separate 
Gotham tv’ers as backstop for 
Election Night (Nov. 4) coverage. 

YOB-TV, WNEW-TY and 
WNTA-TV are each reported vying 
for the Trib’s support, but no. an¬ 
swer has been forthcoming, from 
the newspaper's top command. 
The offers were made through Tex 
McCrary, who handles the paper’s 
^public relations. Rape* is evidently 
still evaluating the various offers. 

Two years ago,. WNEW-TV— 
then called WARD—aired major 
election night coverage in.Conjunc¬ 
tion with the Tiib, Arrangement 
was made through Ted Cbtt* who 
has since become kossman of 
WNTA. WOB Is In the running 
through its connection wiih Mc¬ 
Crary, who recently undertook 
performing for the WOB eefo r 


^KaMissrtp^ 

ContlBPeC Tr— peg* xs 

with excerpts ficom his plays as 
well as an intimate self-interview4~ 
The "NBC Kaleidoscope’s” news 
shows will be under the general 
^supervision of William (B. McAn« 
drew, veep In charge of news. 
These will include a survey of 
refugees. from East to Wert <3er- 
many; a report on the Amerfean 
Indian of today; a look at the; 
Brookhaveii atomic - lab; "Projec¬ 
tion 59,” an analysis of next yuar’s 
news* prospects; and a .satiric "Da¬ 
vid Brinkley’s Guide to Europe” in 
time for' next asking’s tourist 
takeoff. 

Except, for ; the preem show, and 
“Projection 59” which will be! 
produced by .Chet Hagan, the news 
programs' will be produced by i 
Reuven Frank. Best of the “NBC 
XideSdoreope” series will be su- 
peryiied by Herbert Sussan, direc-, 
tor df NBC special programs. j 
NeN Sunday schedule of NBC’s; 
means; thd end of - Ted Granfl^s- 
texemyear rim ol ^fbutk. Wints- 



tha^ssqme 

RUGCiEANER! 



WGN-TV oommerclali ^ 
results becauso 
'programming Iceeps loll 
watcklng. for proof, is 
our specleUrtslHI you in o 
xomo WGN-tY «*s*1& 
lories and discusik?,|i$ 
sales problems.' 














Wtidm&dMjf October 1, 195ft 


PESWFr 


ItABIO-TELEVISIOlf 


'The Hot Half flour’ 


Continued from p*fe SS 
revelling in the 


rigging clients 
tv lanes. 

"The Hot Half Hour," briefly, is 
the uncorseted tale of a respected 
ad agency’s veep in charge of tv 
who put "Put ’n’ Take," a big- 
money giveaway quiz on the air for 
the House of Karess and what sub¬ 
sequently happened to all con¬ 
cerned during' its sensational rise 
and fall. The novel is as uptodate 
as the N.Y. County Grand Jury’s 
probe of quiz shows jmd there’s 
even a reference to sharp practices 
on quiz shows such as when the 
mother of a hot-shot, nine-year old 
girl-quiz expert on atomic science 
tries to pull a fast one by also try¬ 
ing to get her son on the same 
program;. "There go the ratings," 
the package producer sighed. And 
the author continues in this jugular 
vein: "And the stink the papers 
would raise would be something. 
But what Could he do? He agreed 
to put the boy on the' following 
week, and then had to get rid of 
the little girl though we’d been 
planning on' her for weeks more. 
A real curve of a question, speci¬ 
ally prepared, and it was goodbye 
to the kid." This was only one 
of many minor headaches confront¬ 
ing Roger Norden, hero of "The 
Hot Half-Hour.” 

Like most, hucksters, in the ad¬ 
vertising agency dodge, the hero 
is a pro in his racket and can pitch 
for a new *ccount with .the smooth¬ 
ness of vaseline and make love with 
the patter of an ivy-league prince. 
It doesn’t require too much for 
Norden- to knock off the "high¬ 
cheekboned” love interest in the 
book with fancy-schmancy art talk 
about Laurencin, Roualt and Ma¬ 
rin' and comfy carriage tides 
through Central Park underneath 
a starshot sky. 

Loisa Realism 

There is also a vast amount of 
gutsy realism in the studio scenes, 
agency conference rooms, sponsors’ 
offices, inner sanctum of package 
producers, talent agencies but, best 
of all, is Foreman’s carbolic por¬ 
trait of the inhabitants of the 
House of Karess. Nor can the" 


reader neglect to mitt Eoreman ior 
his breakdown of the five basic 
types of agency account executives, 
namely the "Good,” the "Crew 
Cuts” or "Princetons,” the “Cre¬ 
tins,” the "Legacies” and the 
"Eagle Scouts.” 

Foreman’s description of the 
"Princeton” type is one "who 
didn’t necessarily attend Prince¬ 
ton, though most of them actually 
did. If he didn’t his father did and 
the boy tried to. Or if neither of 
these cases applies, he looks like 
he did. For example, he gets his 
clothes cut too narrow at the ankles 
and frowns on padding and has a 
sort of nauseating w clean-cut ap¬ 
pearance surrounding a brain of 
birdlike dimensions. He is very 
social and quite often has his pic¬ 
ture taken behind a Stork. Club 
ashtray for Charlie Ventura’s col¬ 
umn. Also his- namjp is invariably 
confused—his first name sound¬ 
ing more like a last—for instance, 
Landis Robert or Harrison John. 
A good man to have alongside on 
the squash court but a dubious en¬ 
tity in the market place, as the re¬ 
search boys out it.”' 

Film makers have evinced inter¬ 
est in "The Hot Half Hour” and 
it : should indeed make a biting 
film about the unbuttoned goings- 
on among the quizzers. There’s 
peak hour entertainment value and 
much clinical hi-jinks in the Fore¬ 
man tome. “The Hot Half Hour” 
is nearly always hot reading. 


Storsr, WBG 

Continued from pafe 27 

censee in operating his station in 
the public Interest.” 


bearings from the station’s regular 
news- service, which ^would have 
been presented whether any sup¬ 
plemental visual material of this 
kind was available or not 

FCC called the explanations "im- 
material.’V The commission called 
for "the highest degree of dili¬ 
gence” on the part of tv-radio li¬ 
censees in poUtiad^programs or 
programs involving ""discussion of 
public issues.” They should, FCC 
said, ascertain in advance "the ac¬ 
tual source” of material used—and 
identify it correctly on the air. 

"This situation (is) : . . . a serious 
matter,” FCC declared. 


WNEW-TV 

Continued from, page 27 
gin airing the shows early in De¬ 
cember at 4:30 p.m. on Saturdays. 
Stanza is reportedly to be spon¬ 
sored regionally in the midwest by 
American Tobacco but the under¬ 
standing at the /moment is that 
WNEW will seek another sponsor 
for N. Y. end. 

On the telefilm front, WNEW 
inked "Night Court,” a film edi¬ 
tion -of the KTLA, Los Angeles, 
stanza. Deal was made via Ban¬ 
ner Films. Recently, the station 
added "Divorce Hearing,” an In¬ 
terstate package,' to its. nighttime 
schedule, but "Night” is tar¬ 
geted for a start in late fail. 

WNEW intends keeping flexible 
some of Its present nighttime film 
commitments, in . the event the live 
programming it hopes to get’comes 
through. Station emphasizes that 
sometime this fall it intends to re¬ 
turn with “Night Beat.” It. has 
been dickering with Mike Wallace 
to return to the show which gave 
him his national fame, but the sta¬ 
tion says that 4eal is highly com- 

The Storer company toid FCC it■' P_ Uaited w 

had no direct knowledge of who 1 (Whether ABC will re¬ 

paid for the preparation and dis T ; lease Wallace from the contract he 
tribution of the kiries and did not has there before next May is part 
regard the.program as "sponsored.” . the complication:) 

Westinghouse said the kine ex-J Until they’re set, station is. not 
cerpts were presented only "in-1 yakking about its other live night- 
cidentally,” as Supplementary ina-[time plans, - except to say that if j 
terial in - regular newscasts con- j all goes well there’ll be 12 new 
nected with information about the i hours of live nighttime shortly. I 



ByMpIs. TV Where It Hurts Most 


Minneapolis, Sept 30. 

A losing season last year when 
a Western Conference champion¬ 
ship was thought to be in the 
cards finds U. of Minnesota foot¬ 
ball coach Murray Warmouth also 
losing out on a 10-week television 
show that netted him $8,000 each 
for Tiis first three years here. The 
$8,000 supplemented his $16,500 
coaching salary. 

It’s the first time in local tv 
history that there’s no such one- 
hour Sunday night show, War- 
mouth’s predecessors also having 
had it. And in this football hotbed 
the development is creating & lot 
of talk. 

WTCN-TV has dropped the show 
and none of the other three local 
tv stations has picked it up. 

Reason assigned by WTCN-TV 
for-its'action is that "the show, 
was too expensive,” but never be¬ 
fore has there been any difficulty 
in obtaining a sponsor to foot the 
bill and there’s gossip anent War- 
mouth being “punished” for the 
team’s failure to land in the Rose 
Bowl and, instead, suffering a 
number of crushing, one-sided de¬ 
feats. 

On the show Warmouth and his 
predecessors - narrated movies of 
the preceding day’s game, intro¬ 
duced players and was interview¬ 
ed regarding the contest just play¬ 
ed, the next week’s game and 
football happenings in general. 

After last season’s disasters on 
the heels of his failure to win 
any championship his first two 
years here, Warmouth took ipuch 
heat from some of the alumni and 
downtown quarterbacks. But his 
contract had two more years to 
run and he didn’t resign, although 
there were newspaper stories, to 
the effect that he was considering 
other offers. 

The fact that this season’s Gop¬ 
her football prospects are regard¬ 
ed as exceedingly poor also might 
have been a bankroller deterrent, 
although in past years this never 
held back sponsorship. And, it’s 


pointed out that football interest 
still remains high, with the sale 
of season tickets over 22,000 close 
to the record, and capacity attend¬ 
ance of 60,000 a $4 per ducat in¬ 
dicated for every one of the five 
home games. 

WTCN-TV officials say that pro¬ 
gramming changes also were a 
factor in the decision to drop the 
show, but in tv circles the talk 
Is that If it could have been sold 
—it always was sold so easily be¬ 
fore—It surely would have landed 
on one of the four stations. War- 
mouth’s foes feel that the poten¬ 
tial sponsors have desisted in the 
hope that the coach would be in¬ 
fluenced to step out because of ■ 
the blow to his pocketbook. 

Some of the tv stations have 
put out feelers regarding getting 
the games’ movies without War¬ 
mouth, but Minnesota athletic di¬ 
rector Ike Armstrong says "noth¬ 
ing doing.” He’s said to he con¬ 
sidering turning them over with¬ 
out cost to the Twin Cities’ educa¬ 
tional station, KTCA-TV, in the 
operation of which the university 
itself plays a prominent part. 


TORRE CONVICTION 
UPHELD RY COURT 

U. S. Court of Appeals yesterday 
(Tues.) upheld unanimously the 
criminal contempt conviction of 
Marie Torre, N. Y. Herald Trib¬ 
une’s tv columnist, for refusing to 
reveal a news source. She was 
sentenced to serve 10 days in jail 
last November by „ Federal Judge 
Sylvester J. Ryan. 

The case is an outgrowth of Mist 
Torre’s remarks in one of. her col¬ 
umns regarding Judy Garland’s be¬ 
haviour in connection with a sched- 
uled appearance on CBS _and the 
reporter’s refusal to nine the 
source of her information. 








44 


Cetofctr l t '»» 


Foreign TV Reviews 


t CMdBMl lrm jin M j 


ters in "Oh How an Tree^' Singer 
has friendly style of announcing 
and gabbing, and avoids arrogance 
in tone. 

At show caught. Max Jaffa, lead¬ 
ing 'English violinist, was his guest, 
and impressed with musicianship. 
Settings by Robert McGowan are 
in keeping with simplicity of pro¬ 
gram. Eddie Fraser, resident 
vaqde producer for BBC in Scot¬ 
land, directed crisply. Got(L 

HUSH HOUR 

With John Hewer, Eira Heath, Ray¬ 
mond Parks, Sandra Alfred, 
Maris Taut, Jimmy Phillips, Ben¬ 
nie Mayne, Denys Palmer, Steve 
Race orch 

Writer: Hazel Adair 
Director: Joan Kemp-Welch 
30 Mins., Mon., 6:10 pan. 

Ass odated-Rediffusion from Lon¬ 
don 

"Hush Hour” is a new series of 
weekly potted musicals made up 
of established pop songs with a 
thin story line linking the music. 
It is aired in an off-peak slot—at 
a time in fact, as its title implies, 
when commuters are fighting their 
way homewards—and consequently 
cannot make a hid for an outsize 
audience. Show, which mainly fea¬ 
tures comparatively unknown tal¬ 
ent, is pleasant but unimaginative 
and production tends to get dull 
at times. 

The first story concerned a mix 
up of identities resulting from let¬ 
ters sent by a teenage girl to a 
soldier in Cyprus. Returning home 
the soldier is introduced to her 
elder sister, whom he believed had 
been writing the letters, and love 
blossomed. The two central char¬ 
acters were played by Eira Heath 
and Raymond Parks, who warbled 
nicely. Actor John Hewer, in his 
role as story teller, played several 
small parts and presided as a kind 
of fairy godfather. Boxy. 


THIS WONDERFUL WORLD " 
With John Grierson 
Director: James Sutherland 
Producer; Rai Purdy 
30 Mins., Mon., 10:15 pju. 

Scottish Television, from Glasgow 
One of the few ' programs fed 
into the commercial tv web from 



Mgt. WilSam Morris Ayoocy 


ROSLYN 

Long Island, N. Y; 

BmvHFuI Brick & FMdsfona Split 
Laval Homo in tha tlnost port of 
Rosiyn. Moinfficoptiy landscapad 
plot ovor 1/3 ocro. 11 rooms, fully 
afrcondltlonod, 15x14 lhdfij' room, 
formal dlnlns room, cathodral coil- 
Ins, spacious dlnotto, all stalnloa 
staol kltchofi, 5 mastar-stxa bod- 
rooms, 3 comploto baths, 3 car 
garagt, 3 dons with additional 
kit chon, 31 ft. codar clarets, many 
othor ultra-modern features. 1m- 
madlato possession. Asking SiSAM. 
Principals only. Call Owner MAy- 
falr 1-3M3. 


FOR SALE, Long Islaid 

Great Natk EststM-Eafllili *tiiM* kerne, 
'/* «w«. eultlvated smtarfe. Larse etvdle 
living mm, dla|a« mm evarleeklaf terra** 
and reek sardea. < s ked re* t . 2 Wki. attrm- 
tlva slay ream. Walee. riahts. keatlni. seel 
prlvll****. EXCLUSIVE SECTION. 935,40#. 
5h*ne Hretar 7-5145. 


PUBLIC TAX ACCOUNTANT 

Executive background, specialising 
Radlo-TV Bold, seeks -top level 
accounts. Presently serving outstand¬ 
ing cllontolo and CPA ‘tax arganiia. 
tlon. Otffco skills. Per dlom rates. 
Highest references. 

Writ* Box, V 1M1 VAIUTY 
154 West 44th St„ Mow York 34, N. Y. 



its Scottish outlet, "This Wonder¬ 
ful World” is 30 minutes of good 
adult programming. Show is com¬ 
piled entirely from filmed material 
from all sources and sets out pure¬ 
ly to provide interest over a wide 
variety of subjects. It' is intro¬ 
duced authoritatively by James 
Sutherland who keeps hij observa¬ 
tions concise. 

The program reviewed included 
a short filmed tribute to Big- Bill 
Broonzy, a clip from a Rumanian 
cartoon on the creation of art, and 
a remarkable Canadian film about 
the Klondike and Dawson City. 

Bary. 


iMMistei Mick. It 

was, Harris Bald, tbo city solicitor i 
if PttMrafgh who* had sent s tele¬ 
gram to Mack. ' 

The end result of two days' of 
hearings on thePtttsburgh chan¬ 
nel .4 case wait that little new In 
factual information had been add¬ 
ed to that already publicly known. 
But some politic^^erves had been 
struck in the praess: 

The subcommittee definitely 
plans further tv'probing, but de¬ 
cided that in fatness to all Con¬ 
cerned it would'jae wise to add 
no more confusion^—or new issues 
—to the Novembersalloting. 


Foreign TV Followup 


Sunday Night at the London 
^ Palladium. 

Though the Met opera warbler, 
Jan Peerce, was topper of the 
"Sunday Night at the London Pal¬ 
ladium” bill (21) it was a pretty, 
blonde U.S. ventro, Shari Lewis, 
who grabbed major honors. Miss 
Lewis used two glove puppets, 
Larry Lanfbchop and Charlie the 
Horse, and with a slick line of 
patter and considerable dexterity 
in tossing her voice she was ideal 
tv material 

Peerce gave with three songs, 
“Granada”, “The Stars Were Shin¬ 
ing Brightly”, from "Tosca”, 
whieh he sang in Italian, and 
“You’ll Never Walk Alone”, a hit 
number from "Carousel.” It was 
an agreeable, well-balanced act. 
The rest of the bill also helped 
this show to a higher standard 
than last week’s opener. Roy Cas¬ 
tle, a new British discovery, sang, 
played trumpet, danced and did a 
neat impersonation of Jerry Lewis, 
and looks like an act worth en¬ 
couraging, especially for his eccen¬ 
tric hoofing. 

Other acts were the Marino 
Marini Quartet, singing smoothly 
in Italian, with the apparently in¬ 
evitable "Volare” cropping up, and 
a British singing combo, the Mud¬ 
larks, who offered “I Need You”, 
“I Didn’t Know the Gun Was 
Loaded” and “There’s Never Been 
a Night Like This,” their latest 
disk hit The Mudlarks offer 
nothing new but theirs is a pol¬ 
ished, happy performance. Bruce 
Forsyth handled the second of his 
emcee'ing chores with more assur¬ 
ance and the Tiller Girls, Reg 
Cole’s Palladium, orchestra and 
Byran! Tester's 'production all 
helped towards a pleasant hour’s 
entertainment Rich. 


TV Probes 

Continued from pare. 22 ; 
merger, Hearst newspapers and a 
local group called Television City, 
Inc. 

As far as the Democrats were 
concerned, the latest Capitol Hill 
name calling involved Sen. George 
A. Smathers (D-Fla.), chairman of 
the Senate Democratic Campaign 
Committee, and Pittsburgh Mayor 
David Lawrence, the Democrats’ 
candidate' for the Pennsylvania 
State house in the Nov. 4 balloting. 

Smathers, Investigator Eastland 
reported,, arranged a meeting be¬ 
tween a Hearst executive, Richard 
Berlin, and Richard A. Mack, then 
a FCC Commissioner, now re¬ 
signed and under' indictment in 
connection with another FCC case, 
Mieini channel 10. Eastland said 
this meeting took place just after 
FCC had heard oral arguments in 
the Pittsburgh case*-and well be¬ 
fore Commissioners disclosed any 
decision on it. 

Harris explained later he had 
learned from Smathers that It was 
Smathers’ Office staff who set up 
the conference and that the Sena¬ 
tor was unaware that the case was 
awaiting a decision! 

Mayor Lawrence was fingered T>y 
Eastland as having been the 
4 ‘mayor of a large city” (as East- 
land had referred to him earlier 
in A political teaser with no name 
mentioned) who wrote two FCC 
Commissioners. Mack and Robert 
T. Bartley, both Democrats, in be¬ 
half of one of the applicants. 

Harris heard from Lawrence 
without undue delay. And Harris 
explained that Lawrence had writ¬ 
ten Bartley, saying kind words 
about the Pittsburgh people ini 


Coast ‘Livas’ It Up 

Continued from page 27 === 
moved in where "Love and Mar¬ 
riage” was originally pencilled. 

But for the live fraternity; there 
are now 17 nighttime stanzas slated 
for Coast origination, as compared 
with only nine scheduled as of 
July. They are Dinah Shore, Eddie 
Fisher, George Gohel, Milton Berle, 
Tennessee Ernie Ford shows plus 
"This Is Your Life” and “Ellery 
Queen” for NBC; “You Asked for 
It,” “Anybody Can Play,” "Traffic 
Court,” “Stars of Jazz” and the two 
Lawrence Welk shows on ABC; and 
Jack Benny, Red Skelton, “Play¬ 
house 90” and “Pursuit,” CBS. 

Daytime, too, has picked up, via 
ABC’s two half-hour strips, “Lib- 
erace Show” and “Your Day in 
Court.” NBC has three strips orig¬ 
inating here, “It Could Be You,” 
“Truth qr Consequences” (which 
has been reinstated) and “Queen 
for a Day,” while CBS is stet with 
Art Linkletter’s “House Party.” 

Decision by the webs to orig¬ 
inate from here, ±gther than New 
York, When scheduling the live en-. 
tries as replacements for the spon- 
sorless vidpix.V stemmed largely 
from studio cooperations. Webs* 
large Coast plants Vere running at 
considerably less than capacity, 
and economicaUyTlhey’re less of a 
strain than the Gotham studio set¬ 
ups. 


Continue* from pace lijssssi 
conception;necessitates tome im¬ 
perfect camerawork, 'Yorkin de^ 
Clares, he’s balanced the value of 
the dene* itself against the disad¬ 
vantage of the had picture, and 
favored the dance. Hence, Astaire 
in the opening number and in one 
other segment, will have no less 
than 16 girls on-camera with him. 
Although the "crowding” necessi¬ 
tates long shots and imperfect cen¬ 
tering, the dance itself is so good 
as to minimize the ha's camera 
angles, YorkLn feels. 

First Astaira outing will be vir¬ 
tual all-dance, but for the second 
special, sometime in February or 
March, Yorkin hopes to do a book 
show he originally wrote for Pat 
Weaver just about the time Weaver 
left NBC and which he- has since 
kept on the shelf. Following the 
first special, Astaire goes to Aus¬ 
tralia for his first straight-dramatic 
role in the filmizhtion of “On the 
Beach,” then returns to start work¬ 
ing on the second NBC-TV’er. 


AFTRA 

Continue* Ifbm pare 27 jasssl 

for contiguous programs and es¬ 
tablish each of the daily shows un¬ 
der fees which are somewhat like 
those for once-weCkly offering*. 

AFTRA has asked that all taped 
s hows on the network bear the 
AFTRA JabeL For all intents and 
purposes that can only be accom¬ 
plished if fil e shows are produced 
under AFTRA jurisdiction and that 
is the issue of the-AFTRA-SAG 
running dispute. AS seen by the 
Webs, (hq, label demand is a precise 
repetition'Of the one made many 
months ago by the International 
Brotherhood of Electrical Work¬ 
ers against CBS. At the time, 
CBS held that it had absolutely no 
[right to allocate union jurisdiction 
to program material produced out¬ 
side its production aegis. Unques¬ 
tionably the grouped networks will 
pursue t he sa me line of reasoning 
against AFTRA. 


‘Yoder’s Raifert’ 

— Continued from pace 21 

sprung from the fact that the local- 
ers were oldtimers, and Chi gaz¬ 
ettes frontpaged the news as if it 
were shocking. 

Actually, Yoder, yanked all the 
shows because they were low- 
low-rated. With “Commander 5” 
and “Bingo,” WNBQ ranked fourth 
in the noon hour among four sta¬ 
tions. Ditto with the nighttime 
service entries, which were struck 
to pave place for the opening 15 
minutes of “Jack Paar Show,” a 
tail-rater in Jthis town. 

The extermination of five live 
programs decimates the station’s 
live output to slightly over an hour 
a day, with only the half hour 
“National Bingo,” two 15 minute 
news-weather strips, and a handful 
of -brief local news inserts in “To¬ 
day” remaining. 

" Yoder’s choice of film to replace 
the deleted daytlmers gives weight 
to the early prognostications that 
he would eventually convert 
WNBQ to an all film station, much 
as he did.WBCY-TV; his previous'] 
base in Philadelphia. 


WNEW-TV ‘Group’ Plan 

WNEW-TV is seeking to in¬ 
volve New York’s'three other 
television station indies in col¬ 
lective contracf‘^dickers "with ' 
American Federation of Tele¬ 
vision & Radio:Artists. WNEW 
has already If ejected a pro¬ 
posal that the* ^Metropolitan 
Broadcasting station become 
part of the network-producer 
. contract talks that are now in 
progress. . 

WNEW’s present contract 
ends in January. Those of 
WOR-TV, WPIX and WNTA- 
TV, the latter located in New- 
. ark, end at other times, but 
WNEW is willing to alter its 
own contract termination in an 
“effort to insure that the next 
contracts for the four stations 
end simultaneously, so that 
mutual negotiations can be¬ 
come a bi-annual affair. A 
spokesman fqr WNEW said be 
has had preliminary discus- J 
sions of the plan with the 
other stations and also with 
AFTRA representatives. He 
said that AFTRA was willing 
to accept the concept of mu- > 
tual talks with all but WOR. 
At deadline yesterday (Tues.) 
no AFTRA official was avail? 
able to comment on the WOR 
rejection^ «- ., 


Ralsey Farirbti 

TvB; Skettan Named 

Television Bureau of . Advertis¬ 
ing,which has had no major execu-' 
tive alterations sjnfce the then- 
Jprexy Oliver TrOyr switched to 
ABC and was soon followed by his 
aide Gene Accas, lost Halsey V. 
Barrett last week. Barrett, who 
served as the promotion, bureau’s 
director of national sales almost 
since the outfit was formed in 1955, 
gave way .as top national man to 
John R. Sheehan. 

Other than for his indicating a 
desire to return to the “profit- 
making end of tv,” no reason was 
given for the Barrett departure. 
However, the general understand¬ 
ing in the industry is that Barrett 
and=the TvB hoard (composed of 
execs from both the network and 
station level) hadn’t seen eye to 
eye for some months on drumming 
up new biz. Barrett has not an¬ 
nounced future plans. 

Sheehan, -appointed by TvB 
prexy Norman (Pete) Cash, joined 
the company in 1957 as a sales ex¬ 
ecutive. At one time, he was the 
Cunningham & Walsh radio-tv 
chief. 


Rest LaidPta* 

B Coatine* from page 21 as 
midseason bows last January, the 
’’Richard Diamond” series and a 
reactivated “Suspense,” both skeins 
not faring well rating-wise. The 
other property slated for this fall 
fell through before it got off'.the 
planning table, a proposed Walter 
Slezak comedy series. 

Failure of tho^look-ahead plan’ 
plus the scarcity of network adver¬ 
tisers for this season gives rise to 
the wisdoms shelling out capital 
for projection series a year in ad¬ 
vance without a sponsor commit¬ 
ment. It so happens, though, CBS 
has just hit it lucky with -* ‘Pursuit’ 
on some fancy sponsor coin. 


Gries-MacDonaid 

S Continued from pate 25 — 
bility of developing wholly owned 
SG properties, as well as those 
created by indie producers. A 
heavy accent in the selection of 
properties will he on the exploita¬ 
tion possibilities of the particular 
series. 

Gries has been a director or 
writer qr both on such tv programs 
as “Cheyenne,” ‘Tombstone Terri¬ 
tory,” “Bat Masterson,” “Court of 
Last Resort” and “Man Without A 
Gun.” In 1952, he was producer 
of one of the first dramatic series 
produced for first-run syndication, 
“The Unexpected.” 

MacDonald has been a producer 
for Columbia for the past 20 years, 
during, which time he made 111 
exploitation features. His last film 
for Col is the sooh-to-be-released 
"Gunmen from Laredo.”* 

Associated with Katzman D on 
“Stakeout” will be two SG execs, 
Benedict Berenberg, eastern pro¬ 
duction exec, and Steve Krantz, 
eastern director of program devel¬ 
opment, who created the format 
for “Stakeout” 


FMNKUN LAKES, ILL 

MINUTOH UTAH 
Hm WmM Acrat 

Dutch C*t*nlal, Halrlaam FteMaHnt, 
Built 1744 IMtnilnd, Antigua In- 
ftiwfire retain**. Three Nr* Hkm 
M urlal paint** walls. Library, Large 
Living ream, stately dining reont 
►rth, 7 bad 


Scparat* six ream guast cattaga, 1 
In bar, ate Swimming peal 31x44, 
many axtra/ freture*. Shawn janly by 
Appolntmant, Asking 9151,999. Hava 
aavaral athars that are werth yaur 

InspacHan. 

- PIONEER. REALTY CO. 

49 Church St. Raassay M.J. DA 7-M17 


. TV Previews 

Continued 'from para 23 ssi 
been Pavid Susskind, producer of 
the pu Pont series. CBS, which car¬ 
ries the Du Pont shows, hasn’t 
taken a position on the matte? one 
way or the other (although It’s the 
network that has taken the brunt 
of the beefs from the out-of-town 
reviewers). However, .Gould's re¬ 
quest'to the network that be be 
allowed to preview the upcoming 
“Playhouse 90” presentation of 
‘Time of Your Life,” with Jackie 
Gleason (since it’s already been 
pre-taped), may bring the issue 
out into the open and force the 
network into a stand one way or 
the other. Thus far CBS hasn’t 
given him an answer, pecision 
will probably rest with Lou Cowan, 
president of the CBS-TV, and Hub- 
bell Robinson, exec, veepee In 
charge of programming. If the net¬ 
work consents, it will have to take 
into consideration the complaints 
of the out-of-town reviewers which 
would necessitate setting up a 
coast-to-coast dosed circuit of the 
taped show. Since “Time of Your 
Life” goes on next week, CBS will 
have to do somi fast thinking on 
the matter. > - 


MODERN CLASS A 
FURNISHED APARTMENTS 

Nr. G*org* Wasblngt*«i SrMgg, Man. 
DECORATOR .FURNISHED 
Ntw Baautyraw Mattraaaas 
2 Studfa *aamv KHcfcanatta and Bath 
Ar*o l Oar*an Apartmant AvallaMa 

WA. t-2249 -a- Now York 


Please Note NEW Address: 
HD LLOYD INCORPORATED 
501 MADISON AVENUE ^ 
NEW YORE 22, NEW YORK 
# PLae S-01Y0 


Certified Pobfie Accowtanl 

t.FJL, axacvth* aadrfai* H Isadlng 
bualnaaaman. Sxpar i an c ad In aM beat- 
naaa jnattww trvata and aatat**. S aa ka 
p**m*ti 't* auMant t* I ndividual nr 
carptrattan. 

•ax V ISIS, Variaty, 

154 W, 44fh St, Maw Yark Si, 9L Y. 







WHAT A HATING 


FROM THIS MATING! 


CW YORK, N.Y., 445 Park Avenue, 
Murray Hill 8-2545 ' 

ALUS, TEXAS, 220446 Coranwrc, St 

HEENSNRO, K. C„ 3207 Fried# Road 


XV 7 JOAN 

davis 

y-\ MARRIED^ 
JOAN" ^ 

co-starring JIM BACKUS 

The ratings are rolling right up* to the summit I The 98 
segments of “I Married Joan”, shown daytime or night- 
time, reach the peak of family enjoyment — and they’re. 

. sky-high in sponsor interest!-That’s why these stations 
coast-to-coast have just signed up “I Married Joan”: 


WABC-TV 

WKAC-TV 

WTEN*TV 

WMAL-TV 

WIIC-TV 

WNBF-TV 

WX EX-TV 

WBTV 


New York City 
Boston, Mass. 
Albany, N. Y. 
Washington, D. C. 
Pittsburgh, Pa. 
Binghamton, N. Y. 
Petersburg, Va. 
Charlotte, N. C. 


KABC-TV 

WWJ-tV 

KFJZ*TV 

WRGP-TV 

KPHO-TV 

WKJG-TV 

KGMB-TV 

KTNT 


Los Angeles, Calif. 
Detroit, Michigan 
Ft. Worth, Texas 
Chattanooga, Tenn. 
Phoenix, Ariz. 

Ft. Wayne, Ind, 
Honolulu,.!, H. 
Seattle, Washington 


. Join them and inject some solid fun into vour \programming1 

Cali your Interstate Television representative now! 


nterstate 

television 


SAN FRANCISCO, CAL, 260 Kearny Street 

CHICA60, ILL., Allied Artists Pictures jnc., 
1250 S. Wabash Avenue ' / 

TORONTO, CANADA, Sterling Films Ltd., 
King Edward Hotel 





46 


MUSIC 


UXHlEfi 


Vefawday, October 1,1958 


I 


Jocks, Jukes and Disks 

m T TTKRM g< " TTrtx ’^ TOT ™ I 

Dinah Shore (RCA Victor): (Springton*) Is a big-scaled religl- 
“SCENE OF THE CRIME’* CKor- oso with doubtful chances, 
win*) Is a clever catching number Tony Roberta (MGM): “SHE” 
which has excellent chances to put (Marksf), a nice straightforward 
Dinah Shore back i nto the hit lists ballad, is crooned in arresting stylo 
again. “I’M SITTING ON TOP OF by this singer. The performance 
THE WORLD” (Feist*) is a good could grab considerable spins. “I 
reworking of the oldie. SURRENDER* DEAR” (Mills*), the 

Jimmy Bowen (Roulette): oldie* gets.a strong vocal with a 
“BLUE MOON” (Robbins*), the big beat backing up. 
oldie, turns up in a typical rocking Mike Kelly (Modern Sound): 
format for good juve impact vial “GIGGLE AND WIGGLE" (Sid- 



Best Bets 


PEHRY COMO.. .LOVE MAKES THE WORLD GO ’ROUND 
(RCA Victor).... .Mandolins In the Moonlight 

Perry Como’s "Love Makes The World. Go 'Round?' (Winne- 
tont) is the type of sparkling rhythm ballad which this singer 
regularly turns up with click impact. "Mandolins In The Moon-' 
light" ‘ (Roncom*) , an Italo-Styled entry, has less , direct commer¬ 
cial impact 

* * * 

JOHNNY BURNETT...PM RESTLESS 

(Freedom) ... .Kiss Me 

Johnny Burnetts *Tm Restless" (American^) is a standout 
piece of rockabilly material aimed right on the juve target , "Kiss | 
Me” (Metric t) reverts back to a routine groove. 


LAWRENCE WELK 

, Presents 
“A MUSICAL TRIP TO 
LATIN AMERICA” 
Featuring JANE WALTON 
(Coral Album No. 57187) 

ing ballad with a fair lyric. 


Gordon Jenkins: “Tropicana 
Halldky" (Capitol). Culled from 
his tunes for the musical , revues 
at Las Vegas* Tropicana Hotel, 
this collection of Gordon Jenkins’ 
numbers shows the composer-con¬ 
ductor at the top of his cleffing 
form. Jenkins has produced a 
series of smart tunes and some 
good romantic ballads which give 
this set a sharp edge. There's 
a couple of saucy items in “I 
Know What Let’s Do," delivered 
by Elaine Dunn and Dante 
D’Paulo, and “Sex," excellently 
done by Neile Adams; a lilting 
item, “In The Summertime," by 
Carol Jarvis, who also scores on 
“I Live Alone." Additional good 
numbers are “I Can’t Sleep,” 
“Live Alone," and “I Can’t Make 
Up My Mind.” Others from the 
Tropicana casts featured in this 
set are Bob Stevens; Sally Sweet- 
land, Don Williams, Bill Lee and 


TLL WAIT FOB YOU" 


(Chancellor): [ George Chakiris. 


“Steve Allen Plays Neal Hefti" 


mar*) is another strictly teenage- (Coral) A slick modern-sounding 
slanted entry crooned in appropri- big ■ with Steve Allen fea- 
^e ado^scent style. ‘^TLn- tured on piano, generates a swing- 
TLE GIRL (Rambedt) is. a bright m0 oa in this workover of 
uptempo side, also for the kids. written and arranged by 


* * * uptempo side, also for the kids. pieces written and arranged by 

DON CHERRY. ••••I tOOKFORALOVE S,* A" 


(Columbia) ^;.Big Bad Wolf 

Don Cherry's "I Look For A Love " (Weiss fr Barryf} is a good 
ballad with a beat which could repeat this singer's impact on 
"Bond of Gold" a couple of years ago. "Big Bad Wolf' kMelody 
Trailst) is a playful rocking item also with chances . 


~ "* “ a quality rocking ballad sawily de- fresh repertory of numbers, rang- 

Ilvered by this combo. Could pay ing from bright uptempo items, 
off big. TALKING ALONG" like “Why Not" and “Sure Thing” 
(Maureent) is a catching slice with to bluesy entries like “Cherry 
a nifty rhythm idea slickly ban- point" to “Chug-A-Lug*^a “train" 
died. song that moves. 

M4ntpni/t tatp * , nrumumr 1 Mell Stevens (Brunswick): Xavier Cugat: “The King Plays 

NAT KING COLE...NON DIMENTTCAR } "MORE AND MORE" (Cornell*) Some Aces." (RCA Victor). Latin- 


(Capitol).. .Bend a little My Way 

Nat Cole's "Non Dimenticar" (Hollisf), the latest version of 
this much waxed Italo tune, is a slick commercial job which *could 
ride all the way home on the current song trends. “Bend A Little 
My Way" (Swecot) is a pleasant ballad sold in Cole’s smoothest 
manner. . 


* * * neert), a rocking entiywith a good melodic line which is a definite 

PAT sczdki.. -roar, lion, roar S&J-&S55 •*»*!• m 


Is a solid slow rocking ballad gets American instrumentals, which 
an a ll-out vocal by this sin ger, never go out of fashion, are dished 
VwHAT COULD BE BETTER” up here in their most commercial 
Chappell*) is an olpy. uptempo style by Xavier Cugat’s organiza- 

Item. « . - -_tion. Cugat’s crew, much like Guy 

Th e Robins (Knight): QUAR- Lombardo’s orch Ih another idiom, 
TER TO 12" CAlan-Edywas-Pi<^ plays with a clear beat and a lucid 
neert), a rocking entry With a good melodic line which is a definite 
lyric peg, gets a standardized slice asset to amateur hoofers. In thi« 


(Yik)....The Whiffenpoof Song 

Pat Suzufd's ultra-sultry workover of "Roar, Lion, Roar" (Broad- 
coaft) may not be exactly the way Columbia U.'s alumni remem¬ 
ber it, but it's due to give this college song a push in nonacademic 
circles. It's the best of four alma mater tunes done by this diminu¬ 
tive. styiist, "The Whiffenpoof Song” (Miller*) is given a less 
offbeat treatment. 

* * * 

AL HIBBLER. ... LOVE LAND 

(Decca) ...Love Me Long, Hold Me Close 

Al Hibbler's “ Love Land" (Skidmore*) ts a slow-tempoed bal¬ 
lad slated for strong returns via this intense rendition. "Love Me 
Long, Hold Met, Close , Kiss Me Warm and Tender ” ( Massey *) 
is another fine ballad with big commercial potential.' 


by this combo. “PRETTY LITTLE se t are included numbers like 
DOLLY" (A-E-Pr) is" 3 a routine ‘‘Carioca,” “Cuban Mambo," 

rocker. __ , “Green Eyes" “Mambo No. 5" and 

■JRSSS® S,, * nifty arrangement of a piece 

WHEN YOITRE NEAR MB’ frrwn “The Nutcracker Suite.** 


(Loist), a lowdown rhythm entry, 
gets an authentic bluesy v ocal by 


from “The Nutcracker Suite.* 7 
The Peanut Vendors: “Swinging 


SET s«igstreM. “JUSTA LITTLE .M* Mgts' CUnIted Aitirts). 
BIT OF LOVIN’" (Jay & Ceet) ] ^w ♦ 

is more of the same. groove,* are presented by this stu- 

The Schooners. (Ember): "VIDD- combo. It’s a swinging session. 
LY BIDDLY BABY’ (Wildcat- of eha chas, merengues, mambos, 
Angelt) is a way-out rhythm num- and tangos played with color, drive 
ber? is sold driving vocaMnstru- and occasionally, soim noisy dis- 
i mental by this combo. “SCHOON- aonance to lend an “authentic" 
ER BLUES’* (Angelt) is an. okay .ietbng- £nong the number in 
bluesy instrmnentsL south-of-the-border garb are “That 

Bubber Johnson. (King): "I Old Feeling," “Chicago,^* “St. 
CAN’T SEE WHY* (Mills*) is an Louis Blues," '‘Swing Low" and 


Pay (Columbia): RUN waneyv is precisely in the Commonplace lyric. . - gers’ score for “The King and I," 

A WAY , SKID ADDLE SKEDOO same groove. Johnn y- Stark (Crystalette): Hammerstein’s wordage, gets a 

(Artists*), a catching tune with a Helen Carroll (Remsen): “LITTLE BO BLUES" (Hildert) lush spotlighting in this package, 
good lync. gets a pretty voeal by “BLACK CAT ON THE RAIL- registers as a* toe-tapping rhythm A symphony - sized orch, under 

S P«™ Pay who appeals to the ROAD TRACK” (Remsen*) is ah number which this singer handles Warren Barker’s baton, has fash- 
one / “TUN- okay piece of special material col- zestfully. “I WANNA SEE YOU" ioned a richly-textured- instru- 
it 0VE . (Daywint) is a orfully belted by this songstress (Hildertl is familiar rocking stuff, mental sound for the shtfwtunes, 

it rhythm entry also due for and male chorus. “IT’S A BEAU- -— including “Hello, Young Lovers," 

ip 2f- /ttt ___TIFUL DAY’ (Remsen*) is a lilt-1 * ASAP, t BML “The March of the Siamese Chil- 


iright rhythm entry also due for and male chorus. “IT’S A BEAU- 
^ TIFUL DAY’ (Remsen*) is a lilt-* 


Spins. 

Trar’i Trio (Warner Bros.): “OO- 
WAH-OO” (Leeds*) is a bright 
rhythm slice delivered in fresh, 
brittle style by this young femme 
trio. “OOM-PAH PAPA" (Leeds*) 
is similarly slyly material with a 
•lightly trickier-sapproacch. 

Ferrane A Teicher (ABC-Para¬ 
mount): “CHE SI DICE’* (Malin*), 
a swinging instrumental with a 
Latin touch, is superbly rendered 
by this keyboard duo. Excellent 
ehange-of-pace material. “HOW 
HIGH THE MOON” (Chappell*) 
also is dished up in a standout ar¬ 
rangement on rigged pianos. 

SHE . CHAMPS (Challenge): 
“TURNPIKE" (Golden Westt) is a 
rocking instrumental that moves 
along with a firm, steady beat. 
“ROCKIN’ MARY* (Jett) is a fair 
rhythmic variation of “MARY 
HAD A LITTLE LAMB.” 

Betty Johnson (Atlantic): 
“THERE’S NEVER BEEN A 
NIGHT" (Trinityt) is a fast-mov¬ 
ing ballad with a good lyric which 
tins songstress sells In effective 
style. "MR. BROWN IS OUT OF 
TOWN” (Trinityt) has an offbeat 
storytelling angle to draw atten¬ 
tion. 

Johnny Andrews (Pinky): “IT’S 
A WONDERFUL WONDERFUL 
FEEL3N’” (Manor*) is a nice ro¬ 
mantic ballad with an oldfashioned 
flavor: It’s done in straightforward 
style by this singer. “HAVIN’ A 
WONDERFUL TIME" (Manor*) is 
an easy-to-take tune with a pick- 
me-up message. 

A1 Alberts (Coral): “THINGS I 
DIDN'T SAY" (Shapiro - Bern¬ 
stein*), an attractive ballad with a 
Latin beat, makes a neat bow as 
a single for A1 Alberts, formerly 
the lead voice of the Four Aces. 
“GOD’S GREATEST GIFT" 


P^RTBff 


on Coin Machines, 


1. IT’S ALL IN THE GAME (3) ....... Tommy Edvards . .MGM- 

2. NEL BLU MPINTO DI BLU (9) ... Domenico Modugno ......Decca 

3. BIRD DOG (5)..... Everly Bros. . . .Cadence 

4. LITTtE STAR (8)..... Elegants .. ....APT 

. 5. SUSIE DARUN* (1) ..... Robin Luke ..Dog 

f. ROCKIN' ROBIN (2) ...... Bobby Day ....Class 

L JUST A DREAM (5) ... Jimmy. Clanton ...'. Acs 

t. TEA FOB TWO CHA CHA (2).... Tommy Dorsey Orch ... .Decca 

9. TEARS ON MY PILLOW (1) ... Imperials .................End 

If. TOPSY*(1) ...... Cozy Cole ...... Love 


Second Group 


DEVOTED TO YOU.... Everly Bros. .. Cadence 

BORN TOO LATE..‘ ......... Ponytails . ABC-Par 

NEAR YOU..... Roger Williams .. *....... .Karp 

LA PALOMA........ Billy Vaughn ..............Dot 

STUPJD CUPID ....'... Connie Francis . MGM 

PATRICIA ... .... Perez Prado . Victor 

EVERYBODY LOVES A LOVER ... Doris Day.Columbia 

SUMMERTIME BLUES ... . Eddie' Cochran ........ .Liberty 

HOW THE TIME FLIES ....... Jerry Wallace .Challenge 

WESTERN MOVIES ...... Olympics . Demon 

[Figures in parentheses indicate number of weeks song has been in the Top 101 j 


i dren," "Getting To Know You" 
k “Whistle A Happy Tune" and “We 
. Kiss In a Shadow," among others. 

The score for the same show, also 
» turns up with a modem jazz treat- 
’ ment by the Gerald Wiggins Trie 
. for the Challenge label. Wiggins, 

. on piano, takes off oh the various 
1 melodies with some attractive in- 
1 ventions that’ll please the hip 
* showtime buffs. 

Roy Aeuff: "Favorite Hymns” 
l (MCjNp. Religioso music, which has 
[ developed into a staple item in the 
[packaged market, is given a 
» straightforward country accent In 
; this LP. Roy Acuff and the Smoky 
[ Mountain Boys, singing with sim- 
r plicity and sincerity in the familiar 
l backwoods musical style, delivers 
[ numbers like “Were You There 
1 When They Cnltified My Lord," 
i “Take My Hand, Precious 'Lord," 

, “The Unclouded Day,” “Lord Build 
; Me A Cabin” and some latter-day 
. hymns. „ 

“On Campus With The Dukes of 
Dixieland" (Audid Fidelity). At 
this rate, the Dukes of Dixieland, 
a relatively young combo .from 
New Orleans, are going to amass 
a tremendous pile of LP’s. in their 
catalog before long. This is VoL 
B for this dick combo which, hav¬ 
ing' virtually exhausted the stand¬ 
ard dixieland repertory, Is now 
laying into the welter of college 
songs. Once again, this group 
generates considerable excitement 
with *their spirited, hardhitting 
performances. Dixie versions of 
songs assodated with Tulane, 
Notre Dame, -Wisconsin, Illinois, 
Yale, Ohio and other schools aro 
induded along with numbers like 
“Varsity Drag," “Buckle Down. 
Winsocki" and “Sweetheart of 
Sigma Chi." 

“Mother Gooso For The Swing 
Set” (RCA Victor), Swinging and 
updating the nursery rhymes is 
not particularly original, but this 
set accomplishes the unusual in 
doing it with taste. The arrange¬ 
ments are slanted to set the diaper 
set jitterbugglng while m a ki ng 
some dever extension of the orig¬ 
inal poetry. Don Elliott and 
Dottle Evans, on vocal, handle the 
lyrics easily with Buddy Weed’s 
combo laying down a swinging 
beat. 

“This b Dean Martin** (Capitol). 
This is a random potpourri of re¬ 
cent tunes cut by Dean Martin. 
The smooth, rdaxed approach is 
heard on a flock of Italo numbers, 
including “Volare,” “Write To Me 
From Naples" and “Return To 
Me,” mixed with entries like 
“Angel Baby" and “Makin Love 
Ukelele Style,’* among others. It’s 
a pleasant folio. 

JmHe London: “Julie Is Her 
Name—VoL 2" (Liberty). Three 
years ago Jtilie London cracked 
into the disk picture with an LP 
tagged “Julie Is Her Name,” from 
which came a clicko single, “Gry 
Me A River.” Since then she’s 
continued to make noise in LP 
market and should sustain the de¬ 
cibels with the second edition of 
the “Julie Is Her Name” idea. The 
style remains simple and . sultry 
and the tunes are out of ASCAP’s 
topdrawer so the set should be a 
crowd-pleaser and her color photo 
on the cover will win it the proper 
display exposure. 

.Henry Manctnl Orch: “Terribly 
Sophisticated Songs—A Collection 
of Unpopular Songs For Popular 
People" (Warner Bros.). Despito 
its lengthy title, the album should 
have added something like - “In¬ 
side Irving Taylor,” for it shows 
off the cleffer as probably only his 
friends and house-guests know 
hint And they know him as a guy 
Who pokes fun at established def¬ 
iers and popular song patterns. 
He takes after the hillbillies, the 
showtunes, popular orch and sing¬ 
ing styles, etc. It’s all 'an inside 
joke with limited appeal but music 
hizites will have a lot of fun with 
it Herm. 

ASGAP Fielding 

Continued front 'pas* 1 saa 

ness details to its chief competitor. ~ 
BMI insists that it needs the 
ASCAP cards* to fight the ASCAP 
cleffers* charges of a conspiracy 
against their music. 

ASCAP has come up with an al¬ 
ternative plan under which BMI 
would be permitted to examine 
large quantities of performance 
cards on which the title of the song 
was blotted out BMI has declared 
this proposal unsatisfactory and 
its position was upheld by former 
Federal Judge Harold M. Kennedy, 
who is sitting as special master in 
the extensive pre-trial examina¬ 
tions in the ASCAP songwriters* 
suit against BML 


























































Wednesday OctoLer' 1, 1958 


UTSsnsff 


MUSIC 


47 






ASCAP Eyeing Change in Losing 
0( Radio-TV to Pinpoint Payoffs 


The American Society of Com¬ 
posers, Authors & Publishers is 
now reportedly studying a general 
overhauling of its logging proce¬ 
dure. It’s understood that' some 
statistical experts have been ap¬ 
proached to undertake the job of 
coming up with a system for an ex¬ 
tensive and foolproof checking of 
actual performances played on the 
radio-tv lanes. 

ASCAP’? logging, which is now 
based on a 100% check of the net¬ 
works and a rotating spot check of 
several thousand indie stations, has 
been one of the chief targets of 
criticism by dissidents in the ranks. 
The recent Congressional probe in 
ASCAP’s setup by the House Sub¬ 
committee on Small Business, un¬ 
der the chairmanship of Rep. 
James Roosevelt (D., CaU, focussed 
in large part on ASCAP’* checking 
of performances. 

Since ASCAP collects the over¬ 
whelming bulk of its $24,000,000 
annually from radio and tv, it now 
pays off exclusively on perform¬ 
ances JLn the broadcast media. Be¬ 
cause' there is no 100% logging of . 
the indie stations, due'to the large 
cost of collecting and analyzing 
such data, there have been recur¬ 
rent squawks from publishers and 
songwriters thst many songs that 
are plugged on Indie stations do 
not figure in the final tally. 

At the present time, Dr. John G. 
Peatman, of the City College of 
N. Y. Psychology Dept.,-is handling 
the logging of the indie stations 
for ASCAP. Under the current set¬ 
up, stations that are selected for 
logging are not known to any mem¬ 
ber of ASCAP, in order to avoid 
•pedal plugging drives by the pub¬ 
lishers. 


Urania's Own Off-Track 
Betting; Pick die Right 
(store ABe a Winner 

, While New York City politicos 
art toying with legalization of off¬ 
track betting, Urania has come up 
with a package that may bring 
paH-mutuel . windows'into the liv- 
ingrpom. 

The Urania LP, tagged “Henny 
Youngman’s Horse and Auto Race," 
simulate* an actual naming with 
different winners reaching the fin¬ 
ish line, depending on the groove 
where the disk has been started. 
Youngman narrates a horse race on 
one side and the auto rice on the 
other with appropriate background 
sounds. An intermingling of the 
five grooves makes a new winner 
possible each time the record is 
played. 

A regular edition at $3.98 has 
its-liner arranged so that chips 
may be placed on it. A deluxe pack¬ 
age at $4.98 is boxed and contains 
a felt pad for bets. 


Col's ‘Kiss He Kat e’ LP 
Gets Video Show Hypo 

Columbia Records is dusting off 
Its. original Cast albihn of "Hiss 
Me, Kate," (originally released in 
early 1949) for a tiein with the tv 
production of the Cole Porter mu¬ 
sical scheduled for Nov. 20 over 
NBC-TV. / 

The teleproduction will star Al¬ 
fred Drake and Patricia Morison 
who also appear on Col’s original 
Broadway east package. Diskery'is 
joining with the Hallmark Greet¬ 
ing Card Co., NBC-TV, the Carl 
Byoir public relations firm, and the 
Foote, Cone Sc Beldlng ad agency 
to promote the "Kate" spec and 
album. 

The telecaast tiein will he ac¬ 
cented by specially designed new 
album: jackets and provisions will 
be made for dealers to adapt exist¬ 
ing inventory to capitalize on the 
new packaging and display mate¬ 
rials. 


William St, C. Low, general man¬ 
ager Of the Composers, Authors 
and Publishers Assn, of Canada, 
bf ck from Europe yesterday (Tues.) 
on'the Caronia. 


Decca-Urania 4-City Tie 

Decca Records* distribution di¬ 
vision which began handling out¬ 
side labels earlier this year, is now 
taking the Urapla line in four 
territories, Boston, Albany, Hart¬ 
ford and Buffalo. Decca will 
handle both tapes and disks for 
Urania,* which is planning 45 
stereo releases in the next three 
months. 

Decca’* distrlb company also 
handles the Warner Bros, label, 
Everest Records and London Rec¬ 
ords, also in some key area£ 


For Colpix Label; 
'Nautilus’ Top LP 

The newest diskery to be pa- 
rented by a film company, Colpix 
Records, starts rolling this week 
with a program its execs call 
"controlled releases." According 
to diskery*#* general manager Jonie 
Tips and director of operations 
Paul J. Wexler, Colpix, the disk 
division of. Columbia Pictures, 
will hit the market with “spe¬ 
cialized" items pegged for special 
consumer targets without any 
specific release schedule com¬ 
mitments. 

The Colpix label is being in¬ 
troduced in the market today 
(Wed.) with four LPs and one 
single. According to the diskery 
execs, only 11 albums are planned 
for release in the remaining three 
months of the year. 

Spotlighting the kickoff release 
is sn on-the-spot recording made 
aboard the atomic submarine 
Nautilus on its cruise under ;the 
(Continued on page 54) 

Maxm’s Metro Gabs 

Arnold Maxin, MGM Records 
prexy; is on the Coast this, week 
for huddles with Metro execs and 
diskery’* veepee Jess* Kaye on 
soundtrack albums and pic-disk, 
ties. 

Maxin is out to build closer rela¬ 
tions between tiie studio and the 
recording firm-on single releases 
for promoting the pic product. 


ITS' 

MISTAKE OVER 

These gmlbnital days for most: 
of.the Newyork publishers. They 
are helplessly watching the music 
business slip out of their hands 
into the control of a vast horde 
of newcomers literally scattered 
all over the U.S. map. 

Many of the smaller publishers 
are worried over the disappear¬ 
ance of their last solid underpin¬ 
ning—performance money. • Since 
these firms have to depend chiefly 
on current hits, rather than sub¬ 
stantial catalogs, of standards, 
they are facing the prospect of 
getting very little coin both from 
the American Society of Compos¬ 
ers, Authors Sc. Publishers and 
Broadcast ‘ Music Inc. While 
ASCAP has never been an import¬ 
ant revenue - source for these 
smaller publishers, the probabil¬ 
ity that BMI is going to cut back 
drastically on its guarantees is 
the new,- and scarifying, factor in 
the current situation. 

Divvying -a Set Melon 

The economics of the new music 
biz is seen forcing the hand of 
BMI in its relations with the New 
York publishers, many of whom 
get substantial guarantees. With 
the hits now coming from the hin¬ 
terlands and controlled by pub¬ 
lishers who'-are mainly BMI affil¬ 
iates, BMX .njust pay these -firms 
according; ^ their performance 
ratings. S^ich payments must cut 
into the guarantees paid to the 
firms whi«r. are not producing, 
since the ^annual BMI distribution 
fund Js fixed. 

The handwriting has been on the 
wall for the small-publishers ever 
since the advent of rock *n* roll 
three or four years ago. That 
idiom broke the dikes for the 
so-called amateurs, both on the 
performing and publishing end. 
Since that time, the music biz has 
become strictly hit-or-miss; with 
no . control over the destiny of any 
particular song by either the pub¬ 
lisher or the disk company. The 
old ideas'of song exploitation and 
promotion have had to be scrap¬ 
ped. 

The New York publishers also 
frankly don’t know where to look 
for material. In the old days, a 
songwriter who produced a hit 
could reasonably be expected to 
write another good song. Nowa¬ 
days, the hit songsters are chiefly 
one-shotters, much like the per¬ 
forming talent. Few have shown 
the ability, to repeat with a hit, 
and hence their followup num¬ 
bers are just as much of a gamble 
as anyone ebe’s. 


Stereo Starring at N.Y. Hi-Fi Show 
In Mfrs.’Bid for $260,000,000 Pot 


Meyer Davis to Victor 

Meyer Davis, veteran society 
band maestro and contractor, has 
joined the RCA Victor talent 
stable. His first LP, due in October, 
will be titled "Dancing With The 
Smart Set" 

Victor inked Davis, who has cut 
some LP# for other labels, in line 
with the steady upbeat in society 
band LP sales In the past couple 
of years. 

Baker Exits 
Big 3 in Dec.; 
Plans Own Biz 

After 26 years'with Robbins Mu¬ 
sic Corp., Murray “Baker Is resign¬ 
ing by the end of this year to go 
into the music publishing business 
on his own. Robbins, along with 
Feist and Miller Music, constitute 
the Big 3 Music Corp., a Loew’s 
Inc. subsidiary, and in line with 
the general economies ^attendant to 
the Loew-Metro reorganization, 
certain, curtailments have taken 
place within the music publishing 
affiliations. 

Mickey Scopp, v.p. and g.m. of 
the three pubberies, will probably 
designate Hy Ross, No. 2 man to 
Baker, to assume the responsibili¬ 
ties of general professional man¬ 
ager. Norman Foley, prof. mgr. at 
Feist, likewise has Roy Kohn as 
No. 2 man, and Ted Black, head 
of Miller’s professional depart¬ 
ment, has Al Kohn the No. 2 man. 
Both Kohns, . incidentally are 
brothers. 

Oscar Robbins (no relation- to 
founder Jack Robbins of the firm 
bearing bis name) heads the stand¬ 
ard music exploitation of the Big 
3. Herb Gottlieb, who was an ex- 
(Contfnued on page 54) 


Ganwr $6,700 in Conn. 

Erroll Garner racked up a $6,700 
gross at the Oakdale Musical, The¬ 
atre in Wallingford, Conn., Satur¬ 
day (27) night, despite a driving 
rain. 

A capacity crowd of 1,700 turned 
out for the concert. 


RETAIL SHEET BEST SELLERS 





- 


New York—(MDS) | 

2 

3 

• s 

o 

•C 

O 

S 

I 

1 

» 

1 

1 

Q 

M 

4> 

a 

•C 

O 

i 

1 

£ 

i- 

s 

o 

a 

1 
< . 
« 
m 
IQ 

I 

1 

9 

CQ 

6 

i 

73 

I 

I 

s 

S 

! 
S : 

t 

s 

I. 

I 

1 

6 

•3 

1 

l 

i 

6 

1 

■s 

J 

] 

5 

6 

4> 

£ 

1 

S’ 

2 

7) 

1 

1 

o 

U 

8 

cw 

l 

a 

c 

h 

13 

m 

(fi 

6 

*55 

I 

73 

1 

o 

i 

1 

<8 

T 

O 

T 

A 

L 

P 

O 

1 

N 

T 

8 


Survey of retail sheet music 
beat sellers based on reports 
obtained from leading stores in 
11 cities and ' showing com¬ 
parative sales rating for this 
and last week. 

• ASCAP t BMI 


National 

Rating 

This Last 

wk. wk. Title, and Publisher 


n 

1 

D 

♦Volar# (Robbins). 


1 

1 

i 

1 

1- 

1 

1 

1 

i 

1 

9 

102 


U 


3 


3 


9 

2 



4 

6 

1 

49 

2B 

2 

tPatrida (Peer-Int.)....... 


4 



2 

.. 

... 

4 

3 

3 

2 

m 

49 

4 


3 



7 


~2~ 

5 

.. 


5 

2 


5 


ESI 

5 


7 



6 

7 


3 

6 

., 

5 

8 

m 


32 

6A 






8 

4 

5 

4 

7 

8 



.. 

30 

61 

1 

5 

♦Near You (Supreme)..... 


2 



3 


.. . 

.. 

.. 

2 

7 


pm 

8 


6 

jlittle Star (Keel).. 





.. 

.. 

.. 

10 

7 

6 

3 

2 

27 

9 





2 



2 , 

— 

— 

W 

Hi 

Hi 

Hi 

18 

10 




9 


5 

M 

PW 

M 

SB 

BH 


Hi 

3 

16 

11 


13 



5 



10 


.. 

.. ■ 

.. 

.. 

4 


14 

12 


11 

•Kathy-O (Northern)_ 


.. 





.. 

2 




7 

13 

pa 

K3 


.. 


w 



.. 

.. 

6 

5 



12 




mmw— 

— 

h 

m 

— 

h 

W 

3 

.. 10 

8 


12 

15 


9 

tJust a Dream (Ace)...... 


.. 

8 

.. 

.. 

.. 

7 

8 


, 



10 


Riding with the prevailing winds 
in the disk industry, the New York 
High Fidelity Music Show opened 
yesterday (Tues.) at the N.Y. Trade 
Show Bldg, with stereo sound 
blasting from virtually every room. 

Sponsored by the Institute of 
High Fidelity Manufacturers, the 
show is expected to furnish a big 
hypo for hi-fi equipment sales 
which, it’s estimated, will hit the 
$260,000,000 mark for component 
manufacturers and about an equal 
gross for the packaged home music 
system makers. 

While stereo has been demon¬ 
strated at past audio shows in tape 
form, this is the first year that the 
equipment manufacturers have a 
ready supply of stereo disks with 
which to,showcase their product. 
Every brand name in the amplifier, 
speaker, cartridge and turntable 
field at the fair was accenting its 
stereo lines. The major disk com¬ 
panies are also on hand to push 
their stereo packages during the 
five-day fair. Over 50,000 are ex¬ 
pected to pay the 99c admission to 
get into the exhibit. 

Simultaneous with the hi-fi show, 
the Audio Engineering Society 
opened its 10th annual convention 
at the nearby Hotel New Yorker 
Monday (29). The engineers have 
scheduled a five-day meet to dis¬ 
cuss the latest advances In stereo 
and new applications of transistors. 

52 Dates Lined Up For 
Williams 1st Tour Will 
Own Grom; Dayton Teeoff 

Roger Williams, Kapp’s keyboard 
disker, has been set for a 52-date 
tour beginning Oct. 10 hr Dayton, 
Ohio. It will be the first time that 
Williams will be travelling with 
his own accomp combo, two guitar# 
and a bass. v 

Most of the dates, which are be¬ 
ing booked by Music Corp of 
America, are being set-at a guar¬ 
antee against 60% of the gate. 
Some of the flat fee dates are go¬ 
ing at a straight $5,000. 

Williams, who has clocked more 
than 2,000,000 album sales in his 
12 LP entries for Kapp, I# now 
mulling a foray«into the publish¬ 
ing field. The venture, which will 
be In the ASCAP fold in collabora¬ 
tion with his manager Stan Gree- 
son, will be primarily to hold hi* 
own material. 

Greeson currently is working on 
plans to take Williams to a tour 
of Latin America, South Africa 
and Europe. It will be William’s 
first in-person €ry in these areas. 
His US. tour is expected to get an 
added push via a "Person to Per¬ 
son" telecast over CBS-TV Oct. 24. 
The U.S. tour winds in Stoneham, 
Mass., Dec. 19. 


Cap Brass to London 
For Huddles With EMI 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 

Five executives of Capitol Rec¬ 
ords planed for London via N.Y. 
over the weekend for 10 days of 
business meetings with EMI (ZSec- 
tilc and Musical Industries) top¬ 
pers on upcoming classical prod¬ 
uct. 

The label bigwigs include Lloyd 
W, Dunn, veepee of sales and mer¬ 
chandising; Francis Scott 3d, di¬ 
rector of album repertoire; Gordon 
B. Frazer, director of merchandis¬ 
ing; John Coveney, merchandising 
manager, Capitol classics, and Leo 
Kepler, merchandising manager of 
Angel Records. 


Donna Hightower to Cap 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 

Bines singer Donna Hightower 
has been signed to a recording 
pact by Capitol. 

Chirp’s initial waxing*, not 
chosen as yet, will be produced by 
Dave Cavanaugh, who also put her 
under pact 



































MUSIC 


PTSSiStf 


Rock n’ RoD Espresso Style 

Modugno Hot in U.S. While Paul Anka Clicks 
With Italo Juves 


By JO RANSON 

Rock ’n’ roll at the raucous hour 
of 8 a.m, at the comer espresso har E 
appears to he-the current diversion 
of most youngsters in Italian cities. 

TV is growing rapidly in the v 
major Italian cities and the din- 
ner hour finds crowds, at all tv ap- JJ 
pliance store windows gandering “ 
the latest Italo version of “Have « 
Spaghetti—Will Eat” T. 

Last winter Elvis Presley didn’t ^ 
rate space in any music show win-. m 
dow in Italy. Today he gets top L 
hilling along with Frank Sinatra L 
and Perry Como. But curiously 
few, if any, female vocalists of w 
American origin get the nod from 
the younger set in Italy. ei 

These are some of the impres- c( 
aiqns Jim Fasset, music comments- ni 
tor on CBS Radio’s “World Music w 
Festivals” and currently in his -a< 
11th year as music commentator ai 
for broadcasts of the New York “] 
Philharmonic, returned with after 
a more than four-month worktrip 
through Italy. £ 

On this side of the Atlantic juke¬ 
boxes are ringing out with Do¬ 
menico Modugno’s version of “Nel 
Blu Dipinto Di Blu” while In Italy, “ 
Fassett reports hearing Paul 
Anka’s version of “Diana” belted 
out in English. The kids don’t un- • 
derstand a word of it, Fassett ob- " 
served upon his return to the states . . 
last week, but it doesn’t prevent _ 
them from dancing to the music. 

“Any morning at eight you can 
see the kids putting 50 lire (ap¬ 
proximately 8c.) into a jukebox at ™ 
the comer espresso bar and the re¬ 
sultant sound resembles a main 
street drug store in 1956 or ’57,” 
Fassett said. 

From this and other music pat¬ 
terns, one can’t help but observe 
that Italy’s pop music is imported 
from the haven of the hot dog aiiii 
the knish rather than that of the 
(Continued on page 54) 


Ballroom Ops Toy 
With Bally Plan 
To Hypo Hoofing 

Chicago, Sept 30. 

The nation’s ballroom owners! 
again.are studying an industry pub-} 
lie relations plan in hopes of stim- j 
ulating more p&blic dancing. They j 
adopted a p.r. proposal at their! 
Chi convention last week, but Its | 
details remain under wraps, nor. 
does it have a kickoff date. i 

Whether the scheme will ever 
get off the ground is speculative. 
It's recalled that other promotion 
plans have been' up before the ops 
over the past five years, and none 
ever reached fAition. One stumb¬ 
ling block is money; as trade org¬ 
anizations go, the National Ball¬ 
room Operators Assn, is a smallie 
with a limited exchequer. Any na¬ 
tionwide publicity scheme would 
require much ^ore of a bankroll 
than the outfit has now, which 
probably would mean a special ■ 
membership assessment. What with I 
the generally downbeat ballroom I 
biz picture, it's moot just how the | 
ops—especially small and medium 
ones:—would take to this. I 

What the NBOA is hoping for, : 
however, is a hookup that would 
make the promotion effort a co¬ 
operative one, and at this point 
the talk is of an alliance with the 
American Federation of Musicians. 
Tooters union, it’s understood, is 
currently mulling some such pro¬ 
gram, one that might tie up with 
deejays. A NBOA committee has 
been in contact with AFM prexy 
Herman Kenin, but any Unity plan j 
is nebulous at the moment, chiefly | 
because the musicians are cur¬ 
rently weighted with a load of ( 
other matters deemed of higher 
importance. 

At any rate, the ballroomers did ' 
vote for a p.r._ program—if only in: 
principle for the nonce. j 

Prexy Carl Braun Jr. (Commo-; 
do .’e Ballroom. Lo'vell, Mass.) v. " , s '» 
reelected for another year’s term,' 
and Las Vegas was chosen as site 
for the 1959 meeting. 1 


’Misquoted’: Friml 

Los Angeles. 

Editor, VARimrt 
Would appreciate very much if 
Variety could kindly tell its read¬ 
ers that I was misquoted in a 
statement that was carried on your 
front page the issue of Sept. 17, 
concerning the musical “My Fair 
i Lady.” When I arrived in San 
! Francisco the press agent on board 
the SS Orcades, while interviewing 
[me, asked me if I bad seen the 
London production of “My Fair 
Lady.” I said I had and thought 
the original New York company 
was played much better. 

I have bad nothing but the full¬ 
est respect and admiration for the 
collaborating talents of Alan. Ler- 
ner and Frederick Loewe. They 
were great when they, did “Brig- 
-adoon” and ’Taint Your Wagon” 
and now became even greater with 
“My Fair Lady.” 

Rudolf Friml. 

Linck CRDC Mgr. in Mil. 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 
Edgar J. Linck is the new opera¬ 
tions manager of the Milwaukee 
branch of Capitol Records Distrib¬ 
uting Corp. 

. He succeeds Kirk Potter, who 
was recently Switched over to the 
Chicago branch of CRDC as opera¬ 
tions manager. 


LESTER LANIN 


Played to BIGGEST STREET 
BLOCK PARTY EVER. 44,000 
danced to LANIN BAND in BROCK¬ 
TON, MASS. 

Oct ?-16: CHASE HOTEL, St. 
Louis. • 

Soon to be released: EPIC ALBUM. 
“HAVE BAND, WILL TRAVEL.” 


Ralph Stem Heads A&R 
For Pickwick’s Labels 

Ralph Stein has been set by Sy 
Leslie, Pickwick Sales Corp. prexy, 
to head the artists & repertoire de¬ 
partments for the lowprice De¬ 
sign label and for the kidisk line, 
Cricket Records. Warren Vincent 
will remain as musical director. 

In the past few years, Stein has 
been a freelance disk producer. 


Vidawdiy, October 1, 1953 


hade Staff-Music 

“Non Dimentlcar,” an Italian tune which wag originally heard in 
the pic import, “Anna,” four years ago, has coma up with jits 15th disk 
version recently even though it nev$r has broken through as a hit. 
Tuna was originally the back side of the MGM click soundtrack alica 
of the “Anna” tuna under the title of “T’ho Voluto Bene.” It was 
picked up by the smart supper club songstresses as a good perform¬ 
ance song, which cued publisher Howie Richmond to coma up with an 
English-language version. The first try was under the title “If You 
Said Goodbye.” The current version was written by Shelly Dobbins, of 
the NBC programming department. In. the last few months, tune has 
been cyt by Joni James, Vic'Damone, Lou Monte and, most recently, 
Nat Cole. 

Franco-American music men are laughing at a Broadway music pub¬ 
lisher who was “living it up” so luxuriously at a posh Riviera hostelry 
that nothing' would do but that his 'New York lawyer-friend and wife 
come to the south of France from Paris and “be my. guests.” The Amer¬ 
ican music man told the hotel concierge to see that “all arrangements 
were made” and, that he would meet'his friends when he got back from 
the casino. .Upon his return that night he found himself locked out 
the concierge blandly explained, “But, monsieur, you told us to give 
your friend the very best we had, so we did—we gave him your suite! 
We now have three rooms for you, your- secretary, and youf other 
friend—unfortunately without baths and also, unfortunately, not fac¬ 
ing the Croisette!” (Mediterranean view). Both parties agree this was 
a new kind of “fractured French” deal. 

RCA Victor pactee Johnny O’Neill has indirectly climbed on the 
“Wagon” and.it could pay off in big returns for the youthful’singer. 
O'Neill has been chosen to record the theme song for NBC-TV’s “Wag¬ 
on Train” vidpix" series, both for the background music’ of the show, 
which will be played over the titles; and for an RCA disk; Shorty "Rog¬ 
ers, under pact, to the same label, will backstop the session of the 
“Wagon” song, which was penned by Sammy-Fain and Jack Brooks. 
Singer is currently playing a two-week engagement at King’s Supper 
Club in Santa Barbara. 

Sammy. Cahn’s’ 25th anni as a songwriter was cited before Congress 
by Representative Gordon McDonough of Southern California and re¬ 
ported in the Sept 12 edition of the Congressional Record. Rep. Mc¬ 
Donough called attention to the 50,900,000 disks which have been made 
of Cahn’s songs .and the more than 10,000,000 sheet music copies that 
have been’sold over the world. 


RETAIL ALBUM BEST SELLERS 


r—— -P'KkiEfr -—— 1 

Survey of retail album best ' 
sellers based on reports from lead- 
ing stores and showing comparative 
ratings for this week and last . 


National 
Katins 
This Last 

wk. wk. Artist, Label, Title 




GIGI (MGM) 

Sonntrack (E 3641). 

VAN CLIBURN (Victor) 

Tchaikovsky Ctacerto (LM 2250) _ 

JOHNNY MATHIS (Columbia) 

Johnny’s Greatest Hits (CL 1133)_ 

SOUTH PACIFIC (Victor) 

Soundtrack (LOC 1932) ...-. 

JOHNNY MATHIS (Columbia) 

Swing Softly (CL 1165) . 

MUSIC MAN (Capitol) 

Original Cast (WAO 990) ... 

MITCH MILLER (Columbia) 

Sing Along With Mitch (CL 1160).. 

ELVIS PRESLEY (Victor) 

King Creole (LPM 1884).... 

FRANK SINATRA (Capitol) 

Only the Lonely (W 1053). 


4 2 3 4 6 5 2 


. 2 4 3 .. 2 5 

3 3 7 5 1 10 .. .. .. 


2 .. 4 6 2 7. .. 1 


5 ■ ... 2 .. .. 8 1 .. 3 .. 


8 6 5 3 5 6 


10 .. 1 8 .. .. 5 .. 6 


KINGSTON TRIO (Capitol) 

Kingston Trio (T 996) . 

PAT BOONE (Dot) 

Stardust (DLP 3118) .. 

NAT KING COLE (Capitol) 

Cole Espanol (W 1031) . 

AHMAD JAMAL (Argo) 

B nt Not For Me (Argo 5294).. 

MY FAIR LADY (Columbia) 

Original Cast (CL 5090).... 

RAY CONIFF (Columbia) 

Concert in Rhythm (CL 1163) . 

ESQUIVEL ORCH (Victor) 

Other Worlds, Other Sounds (LPM 1753) 
SOUTH PACIFIC (Columbia) 

Original Cast (B 2579-80) . 

JONAH JONES (Capitol) 

S winging on Broadway (T 963)-.... 

MANTOVANI (London) 

Gems Forever (LL, 3032). 

“OKLAHOMA (Capitol) 

Soundtrack (SAO 595) . 

JONAH JONES (Capitol) 

Jumping With Jonah (T 1039) .. 

KING AND I (Capitol) 

Soundtrack (W 740) .. 

DOMENICO MODUGNO (De^ca) 

Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (DL 8808)' .. .- 
AROUND THE WORLD (Decca) 

Soundtrack (DC 9046) . 

SHEARING-STATON (Capitol) 

In the Night (T 1003) .. 


7 .. 10 10 .. 6 


9 .. 4 8 


7 10 7 10 


.. .. 10 2 


9 .. 10 ’ ... 


8 



































































PSttiyfi ._MUSIC 49 ■; 



Putting NX-Coast Shows on Spot 

----f 


Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Hollywood musical recording has 
received a staunch supporter in 
veteran composer-conductor Dimi¬ 
tri Tiomkfa. Latter has taken it on 
his own to answer Kay Heindorfs 
recent blast on the quality of music 
recorded in Hollywood. Heindorf 
last week stated that motion pic¬ 
ture music recorded abroad was 
superior to music recorded here. 

Tiomkin says that's nonsense' and 
that Hollywood sound departments 
are 'unequalled in the world—and 
are also responsible for the devel¬ 
opment of stereophonic sound and 
most other major developments in 
sound reproduction. 

‘Tf foreign soundtracks appear 
to he superior to ours by Heindorf, 
perhaps it is due to the fact that 
recording time and musicians come 
cheaper • in Europe than here." 
‘There,** he added, “they can use 
100 musicians and keep them as 
long. as needed to obtain top 
quality.*. . 

Tiomkin.concluded by saying 
that Heindorfs statement "'was un¬ 
fair and uncalled for because the 
men of Hollywood do great work 
In spite of such handicaps as.time 
allowed, and budgets allocated, for 
recording sessions. 


Holland Label Adds Pair 

The indie Holland .label has 
added two. new roups to iis roster. 
They .are the Four B’s. and. a G, 
and the Russo Bros. 

Already signed to the label are 
Roger LaRue and the Lollypops. 


French Disk Bestsellers 


Paris, Sept. 23, 

Colonel Bogey March M. Miller 
(Philips) 


Diana 


(Vega) 


Le Gondolier ...» 

.... Dalida 

(Barclay) 

La Foule ........ 


(Pathe) 

La Pluie Viendra . 

... Becaud 

• (Pathe) • 


Volare... 

. Modugno 

(Barclay) 

Sarah .. Compagnons Chanson 

(Columbia) 

LTau Vivo ...... 


(Philips) 


Bnena Sera ...... 

... Renaud 

(Pathe) 

Only Yon- ........ 

Platters 


(Barclay) 


Glasgow Savoy Cinema | 
To Become a Ballroom 

Glasgow* Sept. 30. 
r The New Savoy Cinema, long¬ 
time vaude • and picture house, 
shuttered Sat. (27) Tor conversion 
[into a luxury danfcery. House win 
!be renamed the Majestic, and will 
i continue under the banner of Cir¬ 
cuits Management Assn., a Rank 
: outfit; - - 

Proscenhuh- arches, gallery and 
ipart of the balcony will be re- 
[moved to leave an empty shell 
|for the construction of the ball- 


The hew Warner Bros, label goes 
into the second month of operation 
with 12 new packages. This will 
bring the: WH total so far up to 24 
sets, 22 of them-in stero. ' 
Highlighting .^ifiGetoher release : 
are packages 'tft&Tah. Hunter, the 
Mary Kaye TrapTohn Scott Trot¬ 
ter and Warre gafe rker's orch. ' 

1 Although tffljppskery. isn't re-- 
leasing and figures on its 

[first month's Hal Cook, 

sales veepea^ jn^Kts that the .first. 
12 sets:;wta^Rjove :the : first: 
monthfs quota with reorders com¬ 
ing right across the hoard. ■ 

WQXR'SMHi)DRSOF 
[ STEREO IN OCTOBER 

: WQXR, N;Y. longhair outlet 
.owned by the N, Y. Times, is 
plunging into the stereo waters in 
October with a total of 34 hours 
of suCh broadcasting during the 
: month. ' The outlet has been reg¬ 
ularly using at least six hours: a : 
week for stereo programs for some 
time, and has been active in this 
arei of hi-fi" sound for the past 
six years, 

• WQXR usee : ks AM and FM 
channels to> get the stereo effect in 
homes that have suitable receivers: 
-tp tune in. This system is distinct 
;from the multi plex broadcasting 
starting on WFUV-FM, N.Y., today 
(Wed.). Multiplex system-employs 
multi-channel transmission which 

• requires an adapter by home re¬ 
ceivers. 


i British Disk Bestsellers 

London, Sept. 30. 

Stupid Cupid .Francis 

(MGM) 

When ..._... .Kalin Twins 

(Brunswick) 

Volare. .Martin 

(Capitol) 

Kefurn T» Me., .Martin 

(Capitol) 

Fever ..Lee 

. (Capitol) 

Foot Little Fool ..... .Nelson 
(London) 

Mad Passionate Love Bresslaw 
(HMV) 

Bird Dbg ..Everly Bros. 

(London) 

Splish Splash *... .Drake 

^ (Parlophone) ' 

Endless Sleep .........Wilde 

(Philips) _ ' 

Clifford Moves From 
Reno to Frisco’s Bimbo 

- Reno, Sept 30. 

Bandleader Bill Clifford, with 
the Riverside Hotel’s theatre-res¬ 
taurant shows since the early '50s, 
is moving next to Bimbo’s 365 Club 
in San Francisco. 

He will fofem-a new band in the 
Bay City: Freddy Martin is booked 
for a double frame beginning at 
the Riverside Oct. ft ! 

Clifford’s contract with Bimbo’s 
club calls for him to manage the 
entertainment and emcee the 
shows. 


Major television shows, which 
Occasionally switch origination 
points between New York and Los 
Angeles, are landing right in the 
middle of the hassle between the 
American Federation of Musicians 
and its arch foe, the Musicians 
Guild of America. Latter union, 
which recently won jurisdiction 
;bver filmed music m Los Angeles, 
; has many members on its roster 
[who also play on Coast tv shows. 

In recent Coast originations of- 
'the Steve Allen and Ed Sullivan- 
[video Stanzas, members of both 
.unions were playing side hy side,~ 
It’s understood that AFM officials, 
who are prevented by the labor 
laws, from stopping their members 
from working under such condi¬ 
tions, put pressure on the tv pro¬ 
ducers not to employ the MGA 
[ tooters in order to avoid any trou¬ 
ble on the New York end where 
the ABM’s Local 802 has complete : 
jurisdiction.. The tv producers re¬ 
portedly informed the AFM that 
the matter was out of their hands 
- sinee the music contractor had the 
responsibility of providing the mu¬ 
sicians for the show: ■ 

Read Stumping in N.Y. 

Meantime, Cecil Read; MGA 
topper, is due in New York this- 
.week to spark support for his 
movement among Local 802 mem- ■■ 
hers. It's understood that many 
Read supporters in N.Y. have 
soured on him sinee he signed his 
ideal with the pic studios on the 
Coast in which the staff quotas 
rwere given up. Read will present, 
his side of the negotiations. It’s 
likely, too; that Read will discuss 
the matter of jurisdiction over.film . 
music recorded in New York. Lo- 
eal 802 still controls this phase of 
pic music but Read may challenge 
this in talks with the N.Y". pic pro¬ 
ducers. 

Local 802 is mapping a special 
member<dflt> meeting Oct. 20 for 
prexy Herman D. Kenin to give 
[ a report on the state of the union. 
.Local 802 prexv A1 Mantrtf will 
also ‘ speak. It’s expected that 
. there’ll be some discussion of the 
crucial contract negotiations up¬ 
coming with the disk and radio-tv 
industries within the next few = 
months’,. 

[MGM s 50 Albums 
And Stereo Debut 
In Oct.-Nov. Fest 

MGM Records has scheduled'50 
albums for release within the. next 
two months. The LP program .will 
he promoted under the overall 
banner of “MOM’S Fall Album 
Festival." 

Breakdown of the October-No- 
rember schedule includes 13 pop 
packages, 10 classical, Id stereos, 
seven jazz sets (with two. In the 
new 'MetroJazz line), and 10 low- 
1 priced Lion label entries. 

The fall program marks MGM*s 
entry Into the stereo field. Diskery 
will useihe same disk label on its 
stereo platters to retain diskery 
identity with a “stereo" marking 
on the label to denote the new 
recording technique. 

Highlighting the stereo packages 
are the **Gigi” soundtrack and the 
"Yesterday” and-‘Today” sets by 
Maurice Chevalier. In the. pop 
monaural releases are albums by 
David Rose, Jane Russell, Sallie 
Blair, and Toni Carrol, among 
others. These have also been cut 
in stereo but will only be issued 
for the mtJnaural market for the 
time being. 

The jazz releases marks the in¬ 
troduction of the MetroJazz line 
with two packages produced hy 
Leonard Feather. The sets are 
! Toshlko’s “United Notions” and 
Sonny Rollins’ “The Big Brass.” 

Leading the low-price Lion line 
will be the soundtrack set of “tom 
thumb." Diskery execs have put 
this 1 package in the $1.98 category 
figuring that it can catch on with 
the fsve market at which the 
George Pal pic is pegged, ■ 
j In, the longhair field are sets by 
the Arthur Winograd orch, Maro 
and Anahfd Ajemian, Richard 
J ?nd the l ittle Orchestra 

j of London conducted hy Leslie 
I Jones. 


room. 




IM W » 




tm 









IOi 





""T 





ntTAiL 1115 a llESrwiLLuiS 














© 

0 

*0 

•3 

A) 

•o 

rt 

1 

l 


6 

O 


1 

J 

s 

a- 

0 fr 

►a 

I 






a 

la 

3 

2 

A) 

3 

2 

*ZL 

to 

O 

tf 
n . 
0 

TJ. 

W 

o» 

3 

s 

d 

O 

0 

a 

"S 

3 

2 

s 

U 
. a 

d 

U 




fTARIETY 

• Survey of retail dish best 
sellers based on reports ob¬ 
tained jrom leading-stores in 
20 cities and showing com- 
.Iterative sales raping for this 
and last week. 

- '■ 


V 

.2 

T 

s 

* 

* 

© 

fc 

tS 

1 

s 

•s 

& 

. O 

i : 

u 
a> - 
7J 

3- ■ 

Q 

tf 

fc’ 

D. 

. 3 
tn 

I 

'S- 

t: 

-*o 

i 

•0 

t* • 

0 

•t> - 

-0 ■ 

tf 

91 

*e> 

V 

p, 

*G 

O 

O 

3 

O 

-3 

u 

0 

0 

0 . 

tf 

>> 

© 

u 
■ ce 

>. 

tche-Goettinger) 

0 

| 

n 

< 

c 

es 

m 

I 

si- 

0 

•a 

3 

2- 

© 

a 

u 

at 

© . 
a i 

0 : 
© 

Q : 

I 

I- 

1 

© 

l 

5 

S . 
•3 

a 

O 

I 

CO 

.2 

*w 

si 

0 

tf 

1 

7 

•3 

O 

O 

O 

ti 

ft 

© 

> 

3 

« 

J5 

'9 

g 

s 

© 

si 

T 

O 

T 

A 

L, 

p 

National 
Batina 
This Last 
wfc; wk. 


Artist, Label, Title 


B 
■ m 

3' 

he 

;§ 

V 

j 

£ . 

% 

- £ 
< 

| 

1 

s 

a 

* 

fi. 

i 

i 

S 

m . 

T 

I' 

.g- 

I 

1 

a 

V 

g- 

© 

1 

1 

J 

■I 

■ ’ll 

ft 

1 

B 

< 

6 

CO 

I 

1 

6 

1 

O 

© . 
fi-1 

ft 

S 

s 

It 

U 

S 

g 

tf 

© 

a 

2 

tS4. 

U1 

§ 

$ 

5 

S 

I 

© 

% 

■ © 
ft- 

X 

* 

© 

01 

O 

I 

N 

T 

S 

i 

1 

TOMMY EDWARDS (MGM) 

It’s All in the Game.. 

1 

1 

1 


1 

3 

5 

1 

1 


6 

3 

2 

1 

1 

l 

1 

' 2 


2 154 

i 

2 

DOMENICO MODUGNO (Decca) 

Nei Bln Dipint* Di Bln.. 

5 

2 

3 

9 ' 

3 

1 

10 

2 

3 

5 


7 

1 

a 




9 

1 

7 100 

i 

4 

BOBBY DAY (Class) 
Rockin’ Robin .. 


2 

5 

4 


5 



6 

4 

2 

4 

9 




4 

9 

8 


5 

76 

4 

3 

ELEGANTS (Apt) 
Little Star ........... 


9 




8 

5 

7 

9 

2 

1 

2 


6 



6 

2 



3 

72 

5 

7 

IMPERIALS (End) 
Tears on. My Pillow .. 


7 

4 


a 

10 



3 




1 

3 


3 


4 

7 


9 

£2 

6 

5 

EVERLY BROS. (Cadence) 

Bird Dor .. 

6 




4 

4 


5 

7 


3 



4 





2 

4 

60 

7 

6 

TOMMY DORSEY ORCH (Decca) 

Ten For Two Cha Cha . 

4 

3 

6 


2 

7 





10 

10 

5 

2 



a 

5 



59 

8 

v. * 

ROBIN LUKE (Dot) 
Satie Dartin’. 


3 



2 




10 


4 




10 


2 


4 



42 

9A 8 

PEREZ PRADO (Victor) 

Patricia ..... 





9 

2 


a 





4 

9 





4 


30 

SB 10 

COZY COLE (Love) 
Tepay .. 


10 

9 













2 


3 

1 



30 

17 

KINGSTON TRIO (Capitol) 

Turn Hosier . .* — 




5 







5 



3 






i 

30 

|12 

.12 

JIMMY CLANTON (Ace) 

Jvst^Dream ... 






10 


.. *. 


3 







_5_ 


_3 

6 

25 

13A 11 

EVERLY BROS. (Cadence) 

Devoted To Yea. . 



5 










7 



9 

7 


5 


22 

13B 15 

ROGER WILLIAMS (Kapp) 

Near Yoa.. ... 






8 



5 






4 . 

5 





22 


20 

EARL GRANT (Decca) 
The End.. 



7 


a 



6 





5 









20 

16A .. 

DEAN MARTIN (Capitol) 

Volare..;. 








4 







6 

8_ 





15 

16B 16 . 

ROBERT MITCHUM (Capitol) 

Ballad efThunder Road. 

• 



1 





6 

.* 











15 

18 A 

DION * BELMONTS (Laurie) 

No One Knows.... 


6 

2 


















14 

18B .. 

DORIS DAY (Columbia) 

Everybody Loves A Laver. ..— 






6 

2 














14 

I 20 


CONRAD TWITTY (MGM) 

IPs Only Make Believe...... . .... 

















_6 

2_ 



13 

21A 21 

BIG HOPPER (Mercury) 

Chantilly Lace. 


.. 


7 







7 


a 

* » 

... 






_n 

21B 19 

QUEVTONES (Hunt) 
Down the Aisle of Love 




9 









2 

... 








_I1 

23A .. 

PAT BOONE (Dot) 

If Dreams Came True. 



10 





3 















23B 14 

EDDIE COCHRAN (Liberty) 
Summertime'Bines ... .. 















7 

.. 


_ 6 



_9 

| 55 


JOHNNY MATHIS (Columbia) 







4 












10 


8 



' 



^ , 

‘ X 

mm ^ 


—mmm 

■MB 


mm ^ 





MM 

mm ^ m 



___ 




Wednesday, October 1,195ft _ ... 

Tiomkm Three-SheetsH woofs | 
Canned Music Vs. Heindorf s Rap 

4 —-— : *-- 






































































Top Record Talent and Tunes 


50 


MtJSIC 


f'&tiL'Tf 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 



n 

r» 

ito 

SOI 

,N 

.00 

>• 

t- 

« 

CD 

r« 

M 

H 

W 

ftA 

w 

*+ 

CD 

n 

n 

r) 

M 

n 

N 

M 

i-i • 

CO. *9 

S5 

oo 

Ci 

CD 

Cl 

to 

ei 

to 

Cl 

M 

W 

to 

to 

to 

m 

m 

w 

m 

H 

r» 

pH 

iH 

to 

to 

f4 

P0 

« 

iH 

to 

i-i 

to 

iH 

kO 

vd 

w< 

pH 

to 

to 

to 

to 

1-4 

Cl 

r4 

73 



£no 33ib-[ jibs— arrcx- 

-x j-wi ma 

«l 

1 

© 














CO 

r 

to 



© 





L 

CD 

o 


















00 



CD 

Cl 


eo 

IS 

o» 


c- 


; 












© 











to 











: 



oospuBij tregf—XIJ2—P»X 

Cl 

CO 


rl 

IS 

* 



00 








00 





© 


© 






















H 

0) 

BU9PBSB<I—YTXX— l P«'I 







00 














Jo 






Cl 

to 





rH 








t- 

CO 



H 

£ 

saiaSov so>i—in*F rn CI V»K 


t> 

O 




CO 







IS 













to 
















CD 



tt 

< 

HOBsg noq—XOiCi—pnourei uoa 



if 


00 







CD 

IS 

1 

o 




Cl 


© 





to- 





















fa 

pooMiCn o H—inn 

Cl 

o 

1-4 




CO 




^f 






j 






© 







IS 













- 


00 



a^gpuayfy—A'arv—^»IS amv 

t- 


to 




1 



















© 

Cl 











00 

«d 








ptagsjaatea—tTWDl—' * 3 *f 

i-( 

» 



IS 

. 



CD 


o- 







t- 




» 



- 





. 














d 



»92[nBM1IK—iTWSTM—s«aoqi <W*H 



- 

; 


* 








Cl 







to 




© 










00 

C- 

to 






; 




opsioi— r LOUh — 

y-4 

CO 



o 

•; 

00 

Oft 







Cl 














to 












t- 

to 







ptrepAaio—MAY- 

-urajj aof 

iH 

CO 

r 

»; 


if 

: 



‘ 





j 


Cl 







CO 







t; 





IS 










H 

DO 

RBrnnomo—OdDAV— s3M '*d IRH 

r< 

Cl 


CD 

00 

IS 


CO 






; 

n 

if 






: 




















: 




U 

£ 

•qEuxo—HAi.ps;—W 

to 




t- 

eo 


Cl 

IS 

■:* 




‘ 



© 




© 



CD 











# 







00 




a 

■jg 

srxodBaunipi;— 2LD(U&—A ot Vi ^ 3 l*retS 

H 





CO 

00 





CD 







© 




























saataao *;k—SHSM— jf3AJ *P^ 

- 

IS 




eo 

CD 


: : 

: 



* 








© 

Cl 














V 





: 








b^fpiA—isjs— 3 

iooh *3ia 

Cl 



- 

IS 



CD 

: 

Oft 


CO 




C- 

















eo 












to 




oSBOiqo—CLffAi— 

-3|jbi 3 i»a 

Cl 

H 

- 

w. 


IS 

t- 












« 

© 



oo 





























; 


IS 



00 




CO 

Cl 





© 

CD 





to- 





















3[[ojjok—mo'im— s^a pa«i®jiw®a 

* 


CO 



* 


Cl 

CO. 






IS 

* 






o 















C- 











CO 


o 

r * 

• 

- 



^f 






Oft 








: 

Cl 


to 





■ 
















a 

osbj h—< na5i— uo i a ®m «ir 

CO 

H 

o 

H 

w 

IS 











00 




c- 


. 

CD 






. 










- 







p 

sittAqsBtf—XlSAi—^jaraprei <loa 

Cl 

to 

CO 


: 


H 













4 






to 








o 

t- 

IS 

00 


© 







o 

00 


IS 

i-i 


: 

eo 


• 



Cl 

■01 


Oft 






CD 


© 

:- 









. 




: 












ojoqsuaaiQ— DIB .&—£uiapv mjof 



CO 


\ 








Cl 

00 



o 
1—1 








to 










• 






* 


: 




aXHASpcri—OTMAV—P nT l M °a « 3 X 




CD 




05 


Cl 

If 



‘ 


00 






© 













IS 




* 








3jnqsja*a<3; 1S~NIdM- i8 l Jf 3' m lf 

: 

H 

":■ 

: 



IS 




CD 

Cl 

CO 


: 





to 







© 








00 




. 









H 

esi 

eo 


CO 



05 

IS 






























. 









- 

.: 

to 

n 

CO 

CD 

CO 

: 

IS 


o 









: 





c- 









© 












/T 





•: 

* 


CO 



! 

IS 

Cl 






C- 













r4 

to 

CO 





.: 












aa^aqaoa—03HM- 

-qr^H P3 


N 


c- 

00 


C5 

. i 








CO 




: 






IS 




. 





' 




■ 


© 






oiBsng—naaAi—tog 

- 


CO 

Cl 

: 


Oft 

: 


: 




to 

o 

iH 







: 












00 




to 










1-1 

to 

IS 

CD 

N 

: 

t- 

00 







: 




CO 

© 













© 


* 








; 



H 

00 

< 

^jbmsx— ttT.NAi-=* 3 mS Aniutt 

CO 

- 


Cl 


: 



IS 







00 





















: 


t 1 

. r 

© 


: 



u 

8TO3S—5CN3:Ai—®^p«pia p^x 





1 * 

:. 

; 




': 










© 

© 

















to- 

c— 

;; 




o 


ejourqxBa—i-zr/A.—aa*»a ^ppnfl 

iH 

Cl 

t- 





00 

CD 


:: 



l 



: 

© 

© 




to 

CO 












: 

J 










ucqsiAia'x—KVTM—•touaaMs - ^otuj 

IS 


t: 

[ 







t- 

* 



















to 

ei 

CO 









• 


: 




utnSurqsBAi—qoAt^-P^oj ’b no»IJW 

CO 

iH 

W 


.: 


c- 




CD 


IS 







Cl 





00 













. 






: 



XHaAL—*I«««a *«T 

ci 

1—1 

to 


00 

y> 

t- 



CO 



CD 



’ 















* 







..j 









3iao& Max—KOim—J®* 3 * 

1-1 

M 

CD 

00 

IS 

t- 


CO 

, 



: 





.: 



© 


© 









. 






: 




: 


: 








: 1 

p 

© 

£ 

t 

JO 

w 

* 

3 

s 

s 

5 

p 



| 


: 


i 

1 



| 


j.; 


i 


1 • 



ii 

© 

t! 

• 

ci 

■ ' 

p, 

t 

i8 

A 


: 

8 


i 

© 




l| 

i 

I 

£ 

1 

1 

m 

K 

*© 

0 


• 


i 1 

© 

B 

m 



►* 

u 

compilation is designed to indicate those records rising tn 
■tty as well as those on top. Ratings are computed on the 
‘ ten points for a No, 1 mention, nine for a No. .2, and so on 
o one point Wherever possible, only records with two or 
leutions are listed, even though their total points are less in 
uses than those which receive only one mention. Cities and 
will vary from week to week to present a comprehensive 
of all sectors of the country regionally. 

ZAP t BMI 

M 

1 

3 

3 

A 

5 

3 

s 

T 

fc 

• 

s 

1 

4 

fc 

■ 

H 

* 

1 

cc 

JB 

S 

5 

H- 

'to 

e 

Q 

1 

m 

! 

g. 

C 

■ 

©. 

H 

: 

i 

u 

z 

% 

£ 

1 

•4— 

I 

m 

fi 

i 

C0 

* 

£ 

m 

*3 

1 

I 

• 

£ 

s 

to 

1 

1 

fi 

*_ 

J 

> 

• 

! 

+- 

to 

1 

• 

* 

•0 

a 

* 

1 

• 

I 

©' 

-+* 

A 

< 

I 

j 

i 

h 

1 

S 

tol 

* # 

0 

5 

•0 

Jt 

i 

p. 

+~ 

:JC 

*3 

5 

£ 

+: 

1 

g 

CO 

© 

s- 

4- 

1 

© 

JS 

p 

3 

i • 

«! 

© 

3 

JK 

5 

9 

JS 

p 

■to- 

if 

m 

'to 

fl 

C 

JB 

A 

■» 

©j 

T, 

.Jf 

I 1 

.cT 

£ 

* 

't 

1 

P 

£ 

fi 

* 

£ 

s 

I 

1 

1 

K 

1 

0 

« 

V 

1 

I 

4- 

« 

i 

k 

A 

V 

e 

m 

P 

f 

P 

Sf 

1 

O 

| 

« 

S 

• 

j! 

© 

1! 

s 

s 

H— 

£ 

9 

i 

4— 

I 

s 

,4- 

S 

1 

3 

A 

« 

*s 

9 

i 

% 

S 

£ 

5 

1 

I 

it 

u 

* 

i 

| 

1 

2 

1 

t 

c 

I 

I 

• 

i 

H 

I 

l 

P 

i 

< 

i! 

• 

to 

P 

►* 

2 

to 


M 

U 

fed 

V> 

•l 

a 

Tommy Edwards.MGM--- 

«■ 

o 

2 

Q 

i 

I 

» 

* 

5 

t 

8 

« 

Q 

I 

K 

1 

Q 

>» 

! 

P, 

*< 

l 

t 

5 

V 

o 

g 

■s 

s 

a 

to 

s 

H 

•o 

e 

W 

A 

M 

d 

a 

! 

a 

* 

I 

W 

JO 

CO 

P 

I 

1 

p 

■j 

1 

i 

u 

CO 

6 

« 

Ac 

C0r 

5 

I 

O 

P 

'♦ 

to 

■ 

P 

© 

A, 

p 

c 

i 

<0 

£ 

9 

© 

& 

o 

A 

xo 

P 

3 

a 

£ 

Tony Bennett ... Columbia... 

eft 

o 

1 

0 

1 

77 

« 

H 

© 

1 

<0 

s 

i 

I 

© 

o- 

p 

! 

o 

A 

« 

P 

i 

1 

© 

u 

g 

■s 

p 

i 

>> 

i 

« 

1 

o 

• 

1. 

•0 

£ 

i 

£ 

Gordon Maeltae . Capitol. 

i . 

■•: 

o 

A 

-9 

h 

w 

& 

r 
©. 

l 

to 

5 

IS 

i 

to 

1 

1 

s 

2 

o 

p 

I 

I 

f 

2 

1 

►* 

I 

Andy Williams . Cadenoe- 

o 

Q 

© 

i 

P 

I 

t 

3. 

i 

i 

1 

1 

H 

* 

§ 

*3 

P 

f 

A 

J 

s 

K 

2 

d-A 

s- 

i 

£ 

§ 

to 

fl 

9 

| 

£ 

g 

"© 

> 

i 

i 

H 

5 

1 

3 

•O 

P 

i 

g 

s 

1 

5 

& 

3 

1 

i 

3 

H 

o 

"© 

i 

l 

i 

t2 

1 

s 

© : 

3 

jj 

i 

P 

i 

'i 

« 

2 

£ 

<* 

2 

B 

3 

O 

P. 

i 

s 

S: 

1 

h 

m 

P 

! 

s 

1 

'S 

JS 

p 

© 

9 

! 

o 

Q 

/ 

! 

i 

i 

A 

"o 

A 

. * 

i 

b 

s 

© 

i 

3 




.2 u 

*$A. 

CD 

N 

IS 


00 

- 

CD 

CD- 

W; 

Cl 

i—i 

U 

Oft 

Cl 

1-1 

CO 

*0 


to 

00 

c- 

IS 


1 

n 

L 

Cl 

ei^ 

t- 

Cl 

IS 

H 

to 

IH 

to 

Cl 

00 

«e- 

•I 

Cl 

H 

wH 

i 

to-' 

«-i 


H 

rH 

H 


-1 

W.aa 0 fc “a£2 
K^a-ages.sa? 

tii 


M 

IS 

CO 

W' 

00 

O 

00 

c- 

o 

Cl 

CD- 

1 

w 

Cl 

Q» 

rt 

CO 

Cl 

L 

CD 

to 

IS- 

Cl 


,i-< 

to¬ 

ol 

ito 

& 


to 

Cl 

to 

Cl 

n 


S3 


© 

to 



to 

. i 

to J 

^1 

t- 

IH 



-U 

.; 

: 


; 




OIIIH 

Hi 

IH 

N 

M 

w 


CD' 

t»| 

.I 

V. 

• 

J 

Im 

mi 

H 

3 

s 

to 

H 

*» 

to 

ih ; 

f 

a 

A 

Cl 

t\ 

S 

«!s, 

•* «i 

1 

< 

r»1 

to! 

A 

& 

8 

8 

< 

n 

s 

p% 

S' 

•Ii 

S 

to- 

H 

•> 

h ; * 

SK! 

s 

n 

< 

8i 

i 

m o 
8 8 

s 

to 

A 

5 

$ 


(Copyright Variety* Inc. All Hlghtt Rt»trv#D) 














































































































































































































































































Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


PfiniEfr 


MILLION 


■ < "*s- ~ 


'' 


r' 


y ' =- 






PAT SUZUKI’S FOOTBALL FOUR! 

ROAR,LION, ROAR cm WHIFFENPOOF SONG 4X-0339 
THE VICTORS cm WHIFFENPOOF SONG**«m> 

THE EYES OF TEXAS c,» WHIFFENPOOF SONG<mmi 
BOW DOWN TO WASHINGTON cm WHIFFENPOOF SONG 




52 MUSIC _ . 

On Hie Upbeat 


P'MtlEff 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


New York 

Moira Altvegt was the winner 
in WMGM’s “Date With Joni” con¬ 
test. She spent an evening on the 
town with dee jay Jerry Marshall 
and singer Joni James ,.. Marshall 
Grant Trio opens at the St. Moritz 
Hotel’s Cafe de la Paix Friday (3) 
. . . Paul Kalet, prexy of KNS 
Assoc'.* leaves for Las Vegas and 
the Coast Oct. 20 to prowl new 
talent for his firm . . . Folk-singer 
Theodore Bikel makes his New 
York solo concert bow at Town 
Hall Saturday (4). .. MGM diskers 
set for the Dick Clark Show on 
ABC-TV this week are Connie 
Francis, Conway Twitty and Joni 
James . . . Erroll Garner guests on 
Dave Garroway’s (NBC-TV) show 
Friday (3). 

Sammy Kaye has signed with 
Joe Glaser’s Associated Book¬ 
ing Corp. 

Tommy Edwards guests on CBS- 
TV’s new “Hit Parade” show Oct. 
17 with his MGM click, “It’s All 
In The Game” . . . Teddi King 
into the Americana Hotel, Miami 
Beach, for one week beginning 
Nov. 5 . . . Rover Boys , hitting the 
deejay trail with their current 
Vik release “Ask Me Who Loves 
You” and “S’Agapo” . . . Four 
Voices, Columbia diskers, into the 
Club Safari, College Point, L.I., 
Nov. 3-4 . . . Larry Penzell, former¬ 
ly with Muriel Francis Assoc., has 
set up his awn publicity office. 


Hollywood 

Joe Greene, veepee and a&r 
topper for Demon Records, in N.Y. 


to supervise recording sessions for 
The Olympics . . . 20th-Fox Rec¬ 
ords pactee John Gabriel back in 
town after a deejay tour of plug¬ 
ging his Spot disk, “The Hunters,” 
which he also penned . . . Jack 
Marshall will arrange-conduct two 
more singles for Peggy Lee’s next 
Capitol session . . . Tab Hunter's 
initial Warner Bros. Records al¬ 
bum is tagged “Tab Hunter.” 
George Avakian produces the ses¬ 
sion as his initial chore since 
joining the company . . . Nat King 
Cole presented the crew of the 
atomic submarine Nautilus with a 
large collection of his recordings- 
after they voted him one of their 
favorite singers. 


London 

Audio Fidelity Records prexy 
Sidney Frey here with Alfred Wal¬ 
lenstein ... Music Publisher David 
Toff back in town after a two week 
business-pleasure trip to Italy . . . 
Songstress Maxine Daniels put in 
an appearance in Associated Tele¬ 
vision’s “Music Shop” (28). 


Pittsburgh 

Ahmad Jamal Trio booked for 
the Copa week of Nov. 3 . . . Na¬ 
tional Ballroom Operators Assn, 
in convention in Chicago gave 
citations to four local bandlead¬ 
ers: Artir Am ell, Tommy Carlyn, 
Hal Curtis and Bobby Dale . . . 
James Royal has replaced Billy 
Lewis on bass with Walt Harper 
combo ... Pianist Charles Bell and 
quartet start a monthly series of 
contemporary jazz concerts Oct. 18 1 


at Carnegie^ Lecture Hall under 
auspices of Friends of New Music 
. . . Tune Tailors playing every 
night now at Bali-Kea with exiting 
of A1 Powell dixieland group . . . 
“Jazz for Modems,” with Four 
Freshmen, Dave Brubeck Four, 
Maynard Ferguson orch and Sonny 
Rollins, one-nights at Mosque Nov. 
5 . . . Petticoats (Margie Hirth and 
Mary 8c Bea Hw) signed again 
with Guy Lomlina. for a month, 
including three.^mmks at Cocoanut 
Grove in Hollywaod . . . David 
Hall’s rock ’n’ reoirs into the Hi- 
Hat for a week Fred Waring’s 

Pennsylvanians a concert at 
Syria Mosque Npvi 18 , . . Krasy 
Kris Kolumboa wdhis group held 
over for fourth week at Hurricane 
Music Bar. 


Philadelphia 

Organ virtuoso Glen Derringer’s 
younger sister Brenda signed by 
ABC-Par to play duets with him 
.. . He’s 15 . . . Howard Lanin cur¬ 
rent at the Warwick Hotel . . . 
Wally Kirman, new WRCV-TV 
weatherman, was a trumpet player 
with the Jimmy Dorsey orch in the 
Helen O’Connell-Bob Eberle days. 


Kansas City 

Tina Robin working with the 
disk jockeys on her new Coral re¬ 
lease, "A Little Bird Told Me,” 
while on a fortnight booking at 
Eddys’, her second within a year. 
Shes due for a guest spot on the 
Sullivan show Oct. 5 . . . Blackburn 
Twins 8c Jerry Collins are set for 
N*. Y. and the Copacabana opening 
Oct. 23 for three weeks with Nat 
Cole . . . It’s a return engagement 
for Marty Allen & Mitch DeWood 
at Eddys’ beginning Oct, 3, with 
Lillian Briggs, in her first singing 
date in the spot. 


‘Big 3’ Latches on to Pix 
Scores for Xmas ‘Sheet’ 

The Big Three (Robbins, Feist & 
Miller) is gearing for the Christ¬ 
mas season with three sheet music 
packages. 

A promotional campaign on sheet 
music and music folios is being 
worked out for the scores from 
“Mardi Gras” and “tom thumb” as 
well as a “Raggedy Ann” juvenile 
package; 

“Mardi Gras” is the 20th-Fox 
pic with a score by Paul Francis 
Webster and Sammy Fain and con¬ 
tains eight songs. “Thumb” is the 
Metro release of the George Pal 
puppetoon and includes five songs 
to be published by the Big Three. 
A special music folio on the 
“thumb” score is being prepared 
featuring simplified arrangements 
with-cartoon-illustrated pages for 
coloring to tie in with the juve 
market. Firm also is preparing a 
test on a special package contain¬ 
ing two “Raggedy Ann” song folios 
plus a free “Raggedy Ann” story¬ 
book. The “Raggedy Ann” mer¬ 
chandise is wrapped in transparent 
plastic containers topped with a 
special display card. 


Cathy Carr to Roulette 

Cathy Carr, who clicked a cou¬ 
ple of years back on the Frater¬ 
nity label with “Ivory Tower,” has 
been added to the Roulette ros¬ 
ter. Her first Roulette release is a 
coupling of “To Know Him Is To 
Love Him” and “Put Away The 
Invitations.” 

Diskery has set up a deejay tour 
for the thrush. 


Rank Labels Bow 
By End of Year 

London, Sept. 30. 

Rank Records, the disk company 
recently, formed by the Rank Org¬ 
anization, will almost certainly be 
on the market before the end of 
the year. Malcolm McGrady, gen¬ 
eral manager of the new disk out¬ 
let, has just returned from a hush- 
hush trip to the States where he’s 
been gandering the -record field 
with a view to setting deals with 
a number of companies. 

On his return to London, Mc¬ 
Grady told Variety there were 
several pacts in the offing with 
Yank diskeries, and after consul¬ 
tations with board members he 
would return to the U.S.—probably 
within the next two weeks—to set 
several deals. 

The latest development is under¬ 
stood to be the purchase of a ma¬ 
jor distribution firm to handle its 
waxings on the retail market. 
McGrady would neither confirm 
nor deny this report, but it is con¬ 
sidered a most likely step in the 
plan for the new label, and he 
admitted there had been confabs 
in the past about such a buy. 

It had originally been planned 
that Rank Records should operate 
as a disk club, marketing through 
its picture theatres and ballrooms, 
but this plan was scrapped, re¬ 
portedly because there were too 
many obstacles and limitations to 
the idea. The Pye diskery, which 
had pressed a considerable number 
of platters for the club label under 
a “gentlemen’s agreement,” still 
has the disks in its stores: The 
records are mainly of American 
material and McGrady said they 
would be among the first releases 
when the label begins to operate. 
He added that the pressing pact 
with Pye was likely to continue but 
was not emphatic. 


‘BLUES IN THE SOBWAY’ 
MISSES AS‘JAZZ OPERA’ 

Billed as “the world premiere 
of the first Jazz Opera,” “Blues In 
the Subway” at Loew’s Progressive 
(nee Sheridan, in the Village) 
turned out to be a 21-minute ride 
to nowhere. Opus was the cherry 
on an otherwise pickup but okay 
jazz concert after midnight Satur¬ 
day (27). 

The Alonzo Levister piece for 
three voices and four instruments 
isn’t a bad rough sketch from 
which to start, but needs major 
work beibre it can be considered 
presentable. There was complete 
lack of action, the three principals 
being seated on stools before a 
“Harlem Express’.’ flat in one and 
hardly communicated with each 
other during the stanza. Robert 
Battle was a melodious drunk 
transporting a cat in a valise; Eva 
La O sang of the movie she’s just 
seen with Rolf Kristian, who was 
absorbed in the Daily News. 
The singers stuck to the scores 
before them and any of the ad¬ 
vertised improvisation must have 
been among the four musicians, 
Shafl Hadi (tenor) Dannie Rich¬ 
mond (drums), Ali Mohammed 
Jackson (bass) and the composer 
at the 88. The short overture set 
an-interesting subway rhythm, but 
the A train wouldn’t move from 
there on. - 

Anita O’Day opened the gig and 
scatted what amounted to a solid 
LP of authentic jazz singing. Tony 
Scott, heading his Quintet, did 
everything but show his scar to 
explain he was just out of the 
hospital—and saxist Ben Webster 
subbing for Scott, would carry the. 
ball, which latter did most agree¬ 
ably. After the opera attempt, Art 
Blakey and Jan Messengers wound 
the evening. 

Event pulled about 1,400 (house 
capacity 2,400) and at $2.80 ad¬ 
mission, event grossed slightly 
better than an even break. A1 
Meyerson produced for the Village 
Voice, which sponsored and may 
put on three more this winter, 

* hen. 


Lengsfelder Returns 

H. J. Lengsfelder, head of Re¬ 
quest Records, N.Y. indie label, re¬ 
turned to the U.S. last week after 
an extensive recording in Europe. 

He cut several albums with the 
. World Symphony Orchestra in 
j England and.-set other /projects in 
1 France? Germany and Italy. 


THE BONAIRES 


*USSlOHS 



Singing 

the 

Newest Dance Craze 

on 

CAM Records 

OCK n ROLL 
OLAPA” 


ALBUM 

AND 

SINGLE 

(B/W "Dingle, Dangle") 


SUNLAND DISTRIBUTING CO. 

Los Angelos, Californio 


—T hanks. Bob Hull 

(Los Angeles Herald & Express) 




Swing and Sway with 

SAMMY KAYE 


and his ORCHESTRA 

ABC-TV 

Saturdays 10 PM EST 

Presented by 

THE MANHATTAN SHIRT CO. 

Thru THE PECK AGENCY 


Opening OCT . & 


ROOSEVELT HOTEL 

NEW YORK 


COLUMBIA RECORDS 

Latest release AT THE HIGH SCHOOL PROM 
ROSES REMIND ME OF YOU 
Newest Album, SERENADE OF THE BELLS 


SAMMY KAYE ENTERPRISES 

40 East 4» Street, N. Y. 

PLaxa 3-2636 


ASSOCIATED BOOKING CORPORATION 


LASER, Pres. 


4 







54 MUSIC 


ASCAP Huddles 
Starts on Coast 


Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

A rundown on the finances and 
activity of the. American Society 
of Composers, Authors & Publish¬ 
ers will be given tonight (Tues.) 
at the annual membership meeting 
at the Sheraton-West Hotel here 
by prexy Paul Cunningham. Other 
ASCAP toppers here for the con¬ 
clave are board member Jack 
Bregman, treasurer Frank Con¬ 
nor, sales manager Jules M. Col¬ 
lins, comptroller George Hoffman 
and general counsel Herman Fin- 
kelstein. 

After tonight, ASCAP puts the 
same show on the road with a 
meeting for members in Chicago 
Oct. 6 and another session for the 
New York membership late in 
October. 

Friodman-Holyoko Link 

Holyoke Plastics has tapped in¬ 
die disk consultant Harold Fried¬ 
man to set up a disk distribution 
network for its line. 

Friedman currently is repping 
United Artists and E. A. Records 
on a consultant basis. 


JsSrIETI 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


P^KIHy Scoreboard 

OF 

TOP TALENT AND TUNES 


Compiled from Statistics Reports of Distribution 
Encompassing theJghree Major Outlets 

Coin Machines Retail roks Retail Sheet Music 

as Published in the Current Issue. 


NOTE: The current comparative sales strength of the Artists and Tunes listed hereunder is 
arrived at under, a statistical system comprising each of the three major sales outlets enu¬ 
merated above. These findings are correlated with data from wider sources, which are exclusive 
with Variety. The positions resulting from these findings denote the OVERALL IMPACT de¬ 
veloped from the ratio of points scored, two ways in the case of talent (coin machines, retail 
disks) and three ways in the case of tunes (coin machines, retail disks and retail sheet music). 


POSITIONS 
This Last 


TALENT 


ARTIST AND LABEL 


CONWAY 

TWITTY 

IT’S 

ONLY 

MAKE 

RELIEVE 


POSITIONS 
This Last 
Week Week 


TOMMY EDWARDS (MGM) ..It’s All In The Game* 

DOMENICO MODUGNO (Decca).... Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu* 

EVERLYBROS. (Cadence) ...Joevofed^o Youf 

ELEGANTS (Apt) .... Little Starf 

BOBBY DAY (Class) .......Rockin’ Robinf 

TOMMY DORSEY ORCH (Decca) ..Tea For Two Cha Cha* 

IMPERIALS (End) ........» Tears On My- Pillow* 

ROBIN LUKE (Dot) ...., Susie Darlin’* 

JIMMY CLANTON (Ace) .. Just A Dreamt 

COZY COLE (Love)..: Topsyf 

TUNE PUBLISHER 

*rrS ALL IN THE GAME ;JSL .. v .., *.. Remick 

*NEL BLU DIPINTO DI BLI^OLARE) ..Robbins 

fBIRD DOG ..... ....A-Rose 

fLITTLE STAR ...... Keel 

fROCKIN’ ROBIN ....... Recordo 

*TEARS ON MY PILLOW ..... V-Boonie 

fPATRICIA ....... Peer Ink 

*SUSIE DARLIN’. Congressional 

*NEAR YOU........ Supreme 

f JUST A DREAM .. ;. Ace 


Mercury, Ex-Pye, 
In Pact With EMI 

Chicago, Sept. 30. 

Having severed its licensing 
deal with Britain’s Pye Records, 
the Chi-based Mercury diskery last 
week set a new agreement with 
London’s EMI Records to cover dis¬ 
tribution in the United' Kingdom, 
Near East and Far East and other 
widely scattered territories, effec¬ 
tive tomorrow (Wed.) Up to now, 
Merc'and EMI have been allied in 
Chile and Uruguay. 

Deal was set for Mercury by 
prexy Irving B. Green and inter¬ 
national division topper Brice 
Sommers, while chairman J. F. 
Lbckwood and disk division man¬ 
ager C. H. Thomas negotiated for 
the English film. 

First EMI releases from Merc 
masters, will be “Chantilly Lace,” 
“Fibbing,” “It’s Raining Outside” 
and “One Summer Night.” Retail¬ 
ers are due to get the foursome 
early in October. Additionally, 
EMI plans for mid-October release 
an LP stereb of David Carroll’* 
“Let’s Dance,” “Havana in. Hi-Fi” 
by Richard Hayman, and the Ravel 
“Bolero” with Paul Paray and the 
Detroit Symphony. . - 
. Mercury also said it had re- 
pacted Disco-Press of Belgium, 
which plans to speed release of a 
flock of hew stereos. 

Dean Sheldon to RCA 

Dean Sheldon, singer-composer, 
has joined the RCA Victor talent 
stable. He’s currently in his i4th 
week at In Boboli, nitery in the 
Yorkville, N. Y. area. 


ASCAP t BMI ' 


THE 010 MAN AND THE SEA 

DIMITRI TIOMKIN COLUMBIA 

IT'S ALL IN THE GAME 

TOMMY EDWARDS * MGM 

YOU WILL FIND YOUR LOVE 
IN PARIS 


MUSIC PUBLISHERS 
HOLDING CORPORATION 


Y/ATCH THEM Cl/Mi . . . 

WHISPERING GRASS 

| Sung by SYLIA SAYNT 

on United Artists (#143) 

I CAN’T SEE WHY 

1 Sung by BUBBER JOHNSON 

I on King (#5148) 

MILLS MUSIC. INC. 


FOLKWAYS RECORDS 

WORLD’S LEADER IN AUTHENTIC 
FOLK MUSIC 

NEW HIGH FIDELITY RELEASES 
EYERY MONTH. 

Writ* for a complete cttalo f of 400 
Longpliy Becord Albums In ETHNIC. 
AMEBICAK. INTEBXATIOXAL, 
JAZZ, 8CIEX CE, rN-STRrCTIOXAL, 
CHILDHEN, LITERATURE. 

FOLKWAYS RECORDS A SERVICE CORF. 
117 Watt 45tX St.. N. Y. -C. 36, N. Y. 

DANCE Operator 

I T« frmih Friday NM Dances In 
Brooklyn Dane* Hall. All types el 
music; Polkas, Jess, Latin-American. 
Must Nave seed follewlnt, suttaMe 
agreement wilt Be werked out. 
Contact Mr. Melfn, CV M 1 U, 


Rock V Roll—Espresso Style 


, Continued from, page 4S ; 


authentic pizza, Fassett said, and 
Italy’s “top forty” appears to be a 
group of songs comprised 95% of 
American hit tunes—all- aged a 
year. 

“When I arrived in New York 
last week, the first thing I heard 
was “Volare,” sung by Dean Mar¬ 
tin—or ‘Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu’ 
warbled by Modugno—which was 
the No. 1 ditty in Italy a year ago. 
Today they are all singing ‘Come 
Prima’ in Italy. It’ll probably be¬ 
come a hit here next year. There 
seems to be a musical lag, in 
which a year is required for a tune 
to cross the Ocean and catch on.” 

Fassett noted that the business 
of musical interchange between na¬ 
tions has received great impetus 
from the success of the Modugno 
disk, but continues to be a risky 
business nevertheless. In Salz¬ 
burg, for example, the critics 
blasted a performance of “Vanes¬ 
sa” which was done in English. It 
is customary in Mozart’s birthplace 
to perform all operas in German, 
Fassett declared, and consequently 
the English version offended Aus¬ 
tria’s sense of propriety. 

With his trusty Magna Mite re¬ 
corder, Fassett taped nearly 200,- 
000 feet of music and interviews 
for his CBS Kadio programs. He’s 
currently editing some 10 of these 
musical features to be broadcast 
during the intermissions of the 
New York Philharmonic this win¬ 
ter. A few of the sound-pictures to 
he heard on the orchestra’s upcom¬ 
ing season starting Oct. 4 follow: 

An interview with Senora Genia 
Sadero who wrote songs for Rosa 
Ponselle.' He will integrate the 
Ponselle vocalizing of one of these 


songs with the interview of this 
visit to the home for old musicians 
in Milan. 

A tape recording backstage at La 
Scala in Milan featuring a re¬ 
hearsal of Verdi’s “Nabucco” with 
Anita Cerquetti, the gal who took 
Callas' place at the fateful Rome 
performance last winter, and other 
name Italian singers. 

The Vivaldi Festival in .Venice 
with a montage from the sounds of 
the music on the canals at night 
and the symphonic brass band con¬ 
cert on the Piazza San Marco and 
the miusic from an ancient violin 
that Antonio Vivaldi once played. 

The Pied di Grotta—a song con¬ 
test in Naples and a sound montage 
of the Palio, at the horse race held 
each year oh ,-the' big square at 
Siena. Also a'visit to Puccini’s 
home at Torre del Lago near Via- 
reggio. The visit to Puccini’s 
home includes an interview with 
the housekeeper who worked for 
Puccini. Fassett also captured on 
tape the sounds of the Fountains 
of Tivoli. 

But the sound of Anka’s render¬ 
ing on “Diana” on a juke box rec-: 
ord at the corner espresso bar in 
Roma is still ringing in Fassett’s 
ear. It t’aint easy to remove such 
a sound, Fassett insisted. 


Colpix 


Continued from page 47 — 
North Pole. The package, tagged 
“The Nautilus,” contains the 
voices of Commander William 
Anderson and the officers and 
crew of the sub. The LP will come 
with. a special 12-page commemo¬ 
rative booklet 

Also in the preem release will 


be “Benny Fields and His Minstrel 
Men,” starring Jack Benny, 
George Bums, Milton Berle and 
(Phil Silvers. For the juve market, 
diskery will have “Rudd and 
Reddy,” (Adventures In Space), 
based upon the Screen Gems tv 
cartoon. Fourth album in the 
package will be “The Great T.D.,” 
featuring 12 selections by the 
late Tommy Dorsey. 

Colpix’s push in the pop singles 
: field will be made with James 
Darren. He’s also pacted to Co¬ 
lumbia Pictures for a screen 
buildup. 

Diskery already has 30 distribu¬ 
tors lined up to handle the line. 
Wexler states that the firm will 
have no permanent artists & 
repertoire setup but will go to out¬ 
side producers for its disk output. 

Label’s eastern distribs met 
Monday (29) at the Columbia 
homeoffice in New York. Mid¬ 
western* distribs % are meeting in 
Chicago today (Wed.). 

Msrray Baker 

Continued from page 47 — 
ecutive assistant to Scopp and in 
charge of copyrights, recently ex¬ 
ited the firm also. 

Baker Is one of the music biz 
vets who has spanned the profes¬ 
sional operations (fancy-talk for 
songplugging and exploitation) 
from the pre-radio, tv and elec¬ 
tronic days to date. He was with 
Shapiro-Bernstein for six years ! 
and for three years learned the- 
music business with the late Mau¬ 
rice Abrahams (Inc.) firm, headed 
by his brother-in-law, married to 
vaude headliner, the late Belle 
Baker, sister of Murray Baker. 

Latter’s contract terminates mid- 
December, at which time he will 
announce his future activities. 


the ?o'nmou'i’ Pic'^re 

•HOUSEBOAT’ 

5' c: " i p 9 CARY GRAN 7 ,-nd 
SC PH I £ LOREN 

# 2 GCEAT SONGS • 

Pr Jr. y L ■ C'C Ret [ ots 

LOVE SONG FROM 
“HOUSEBOAT" 

almost in your -■ ry 

BING! BANG! BONG! 

PARAMOUNT MUSIC CORPORATION 


MUSIC BY 

JESSE GREER 

JAPANESE 

TOYLAND 

Vocal - Instrumental 

FrtlliM by 

SHAPIRO BERNSTEIN 


A World-Wide Hill 



ROBBINS MUSIC CORPORA!ION 


GET YOUR DATE- 

BOOK NOW Mill 

Musician*' A Actors' packet slit 
data book from Sept. '44 te Sept. 
'5f. Pin 91.04 to this ad A sand to 
Dato look, SOS Fox Bldf., Hth A 
Market, Phlla. 3, Pa. Satlsf. gtd. 


SCREAM FOR 

QUEEN of HALLOWEEN 

Soofby 

BUY SNEL 













































Wednesday, October I, 1958 


J'E-mETy 


55 



Thank you DISK JOCKEYS! 

Thank you MEN OF RADIO, TV and PRESS! 

Thank you MR. ED SULLIVAN for my first 
AMERICAN TV APPEARANCE! 

Thank you EVERYBODY! 

THANK YOU AMERICA! 








5* 


VAUIEVHUB 


PXudBfFt 


Wcdnttdaj, Octol>er 1, 1958 


Pitt and New Orleans Nitery-Happy; 
Steeltown s 7 New Ones, N.O. s Names 


By HAROLD V. COHEN I 

Pittsburgh, Sept. 30. I 

This city is the talk of the 
nitery circuit these days, with 
probably more clubs going than in | 
any other key in the country with 
the possible exception of Las 
Vegas. 4 , ■ 

Right now there are at least 
seven big ones in operation, New 
Arena and Copa downtown, and 
the Holiday House, Ankara, Twin 
Coaches, Horizon Room and Vogue 
Terrace on the outskirts. In addi¬ 
tion, Penn-Sheraton Hotel has just 
opened its new Harp and Crown, 
which peddles entertainment, too, 
but it’s regarded more as a tavern 
than a cafe. 

What’s more, they’re being 
peopled by some of the biggest 
names in the business. With the I 
beginning of the new season, the 
lineup here included Red Buttons 
at Ankara, Tony Bennett at Holi¬ 
day House, Dorothy Collins at New 
Arena, Nelson Eddy at Horizon 
Room, George Liberaee at Twin 
Coaches and Tommy Dorsey orch, 
Buddy Rich Quintet and the Tren- 
iers splitting a week at the Copa. 

The parade is continuing, too, 
with Jean Carroll currently at the 
Holiday House, Jackie Miles at 
New Arena Mid Domenico Mo- 
dugno opening Friday (3) at the 
Coaches, followed by Johnny Ma¬ 
this on the 10th. 

Flock of Fringe Spots 

Besides the top spots, there are; 
at least 25 small rooms on. the i 
fringe area, nine or 10 of them 
playing from two to four acts on' 
a week-long basis and the others 
presenting floorshows Fridays and 
Saturdays. The name-less rooms 
have long been a big source of 
revenue to the smalltime acts, and 
one team is known to have grossed 
$20,000 last year just working the 
spots within a radius of 50 miles 
of here. 

Keys everywhere else can't fig¬ 
ure it since most metropolitan 
areas the. size of Pittsburgh and 
even larger are lucky to have one 
or two bona fide night clubs. And 
these aren’t intimate, lounge-size 
places either. The capacities run 
from 300 to 1,200. 

Whether all of them are making 
money is something else. Holiday 
House, which opened a little over 
two years ago, has been a block¬ 
buster since the kickoff; Ankara 
and Copa have been profitable; 
Twin Coaches alternates between 
the so-so and the sensational, de¬ 
pending on the attraction, since 
it’s 25 miles from the Golden Tri¬ 
angle; Vogue Terrace has been 
having its troubles and New Arena 
is still an unknown quantity since 
it has just remodeled and reopened 
under new management after a 
two-month shutdown. 

Acts which have been working 
all over get bug-eyed upon arriv¬ 
ing here and seeing how many 
spots are operating and what cali¬ 
bre of entertainment is being 
offered. It’s incredible, unbeliev¬ 
able and altogether wonderful, 
they say. 

Louisiana Haymakers 
By TED LIUZZA 
New Orleans, Sept. 30. 

This fun-loving town on Missis¬ 
sippi’s levees is girding-itself for 
the biggest fall and winter season 
in years of night club acts, legiti¬ 
mate plays, concerts, operas and 
miscellaneous fare. 

Top spots like the Swan Room of 
the Monteleone Hotel and the Blue 
Room of the Roosevelt are going 
all-out with name entertainers to 
lure in the customers. 

The Swan Room, dark all sum¬ 
mer, reopens Oct. 7 with Edgar 
Bergen teeing off its parade of 
stars. Nick Stuart, former film 
actor turned entertainment direc¬ 
tor and bandleader-emcee of the 
room, also has booked Don Cornell, 
Marie McDonald with Ted Fio Rito, 
Herb Shriner, Olsen & Johnson, 
Ninno Nani, George liberaee. 
Nelson Eddy & Gale Sherwood, 
Hildegarde, Liberaee and Carmen 
Gavallaro. He is also negotiating 
for other names for the opeh dates" 
on his schedule. 

In the past, the Swan Room has 
presented a smattering of .top- 
drawer names intermingled with 
promising new acts, but this sea¬ 
son hotel president William A.. 
Monteleone derd^d to embark on 
a policy of headliners- only. 

' The Blue'Room■-lineup vBH'in¬ 


clude Frankie Laine, Joe E. Lewis, 
Sophie Tucker, Johnnie Ray and 
others to be annuonced, starting 
| Oct. 16. 

I Bourbon St., in the historic 
French Quarter, in the doldrums 
all summer, is already showing 
new life with opening of the foot¬ 
ball season' and operators have 
embellished their shows With new 
strippers and other talent, plus 
dixieland combos.. Weekends find 
the street jammed with fans who 
| flock here for the college football 
games. 

Then there’s the opening of the 
racing season on Thanksgiving Day 
I at the Fairgrounds and the upcom¬ 
ing Mardi Gras season and Spring 
Fiesta to add to the city’s many 
attractions. 

The New Orleans Hotel Assn. 

| sees a big winter season of tourists 
and conventions to help the cash 
registers. 


hdostrial Show 


EveryMy 9 ! Viewin’ It 

(MOSQUE, NEWARK) 

Newark, Sept. 29. 

Plymouth present* The Archers, 
Louise Pearl, Joy Ann Sica, Mari¬ 
lyn D’Eonnau, Dorothy Jean 
Mathis, Sybil Scotford, Nannette 
Rosen, Stuart- Damon, Jay Mac- 
Kenzie, Robert Trevis; "Ervin Bra- 
bec , producer; Arnold Spector, di¬ 
rector; Oscar Kosaran, musical di¬ 
rector; Edward. Noll, choreogra¬ 
pher; music & lyrics, Eva Frank¬ 
lin & Ray Jaimes. ■ 


Detroit’s chariots face a rough 
year, according to all economic 
calculations, but the .front that’s 
being put up is fancier than the 
grillwork ana the chrome moldings 
on the side. It’s a year of push and 
hard-selling, and seemingly there’s 
nothing .like a show to get the 
dealers into the frame of mind to: 
go out and make a fortune on the 
new product. 

Plymouth’s show, “Everybody’s 
Viewin’ It',” shown Monday '•9) at 
the Mosque Theatre, Newark, takes 
a different point of attack. It’s a 
show with no stars, little dialog, a; 
sufficient amount of song and 
dance work, all building up to the 
appearance of the assistant gen¬ 
eral manager of Chrysler’s Ply¬ 
mouth Division. Jack W. Minor is 
a personable and handsome per¬ 
former who is convinced of the 
superiority of his product, and able, 
to transmit that enthusiasm to 
audiences. Minor, coming in the 
midst of handsome production and 
lively song and dance, blends well 
with the surroundings, indulging 
in some badinage with several of 
the performers and answering 
questions put to him by some of 
the cast. 

The surrounding production con¬ 
tributes to the effectiveness of 
Minor’s dissertation on the new 
Plymouth: Music Corp. of America 
has, within the small framework 
of this event, given the show a 
•lush and lively setting. The cast 
comprises 11 people, including a 
dance team, the Archers, and a 
chorus of six girls and four boys. 
The costuming is in good taste, the 
choreography is lively and the 
tunes, although having an imitative 
air, sell the cars and the perform¬ 
ers pleasingly. 

This-show has two companies , on 
the road, one in the east and the 
other in the west. They are dupli¬ 
cate shows and the cast ef one can 
step into the other group. With 
two companies, Plymouth can have 
a shorter pre-selling season so .that 
dealer enthusiasm doesn’t wane. 

This season is distinguished by 
the fact that each of the automob le 
companies has put on shows of dif¬ 
ferent styles. The season includes 
adaptation of Broadway musicals 
as well as originals and intimate 
revues. Each, in its own way, has 
been effective, and all have been 
able to generate enthusiasm. 

In the Plymouth show, the Arch¬ 
ers are a lively pair whose dances' 
focus around the lad who does 
some fancy eccentric legwork. The 
vocal strength of- the group is 
contained in Louise Pearl and Joy 
Ann Sica, and the surrounding cast 
includes Marilyn D’Honnau,- Dor¬ 
othy Jean Mathis, Sybil Scotford, 
Nannette Rosen, Stuart Damon, Jay 
MacKenz'e and Robert Trav 
Ervin Brabec of MCA is-the show’s 
producer; Arnold Spector, as direc¬ 
tor,, endowed the layout with a fast 
gait; Oscar. Kosaran ' gave • firm 
musical backing, and the music rnd 
lyrics, by Eva Franklin .rnf /’" T 
Jaimes, seemed to be based arcv.nd 
tunes- heard -long -ago. ' 


USO’* lit Lebuin Show 1 

Nurenberg, Germany, Sept. 30. - 

American troops from Germany 
who an currently stationed in 
Lebanon saw their first live Amer¬ 
ican entertainment when a group 
of USO performers brought their 
show to about 500 soldiers at an 
outpost in Beiritt, according to a 
report received Jn Germany from 
military officials. 

The first USO show to be sent 
to the American* base since the mil¬ 
itary arrived iiji Beirut in mid-July 
consisted by emcee Leslie Gaines, 
singer Joanne Norris and musicians 
Curley Bridges, Bill Jackson, King 
Terbert, Ed Powell and Frank 
Motley in a revue called “Swingin’ 
Along.” 


Ray Saturating 
S.Amer.mBow; 
Theatres; AM-TV 

Johnnie Ray has gone off again, 
this time to South America to i 
start probing the theatre, televi¬ 
sion and radio market for record 
names. Ray is the first solo rec¬ 
ord singer to go off on a tour that 
will take him to virtually every 
country in S. A. 

The market has been explored 
previously by Louis Armstrong and 
the Platters. However, this is the 
first time that a solo singer' of his 
stripe has gone off on an exten¬ 
sive tour there. His dates have 
been booked by Cosudei, a talent 
agency in Buenos Aires. Otto Gar¬ 
da, of that firm^ tnada the arrange¬ 
ments in New! York, and deposit¬ 
ed a substantial part of Ray’s 
guarantees in , banks. 

Ray’s datefee start tomorrow; 
(Thins.) at Dte'Rrpadway Theatre, 
Buenos Aires^cfOr ' two weeks. He 
will double e* Radio El Mundo, 
and several television dates. He' 
follows with Santiago, where in' 
addition to playing the Rex Thea¬ 
tre, he will work the Waldorf, a 
nitery, as well as radio and video 
| dates. He has also been signed tor 
Montevideo and Rio de Janeiro, 
plus other cities. 

Ray was among the first of the j 
solo names to determine that Aus- i 
tralia was a profitable market, for] 
disk names, and hopes to -prove 
the merit of the S. A, market on' 
this trip. _ j 


O’SHEA READYING 4TH 
USAF TOUR FOR NOV. 

The fourth annual tour of fJ.S. i 
Air Force bases is being prepared ■ 
by Michael Shawn O’Shea, of the ! 
American Theatre Wing, to take ! 
place around the Thanksgiving 
holidays. Itinerary hasn’t yet been 
determined, pending a request 
from the State Dept or the Air 
Force for the volunteer performers 
to play military installations in 
North Africa. Otherwise the en¬ 
tertainers are most likely to play 
bases in Greenland, Labrador and 
Newfoundland. An alternate route 
through Alaska is also a prospect. 

Unit will comprise newscaster- 
columnist Drew Pearson, Joey 
Adams, CindyHeller (Mrs. Adams), 
Barney Ross,'Ӥiri, pianist Burt 
Bacharach, a#d six Hartford 
Agency modeik : 

‘Jewel Box^flop in D.C. 
With2|G; Cancel Tour 

- Washington, Sept. 30. 

Four performances in Washing¬ 
ton of “Jewel Box Revue,” com¬ 
prising a group of femme imper¬ 
sonators, -caused a reconsideration 
of the touring plans. The show! 
; called off its tour of six cities prior 
to a Broadway opening, and will 
now attempt to set up shop in an 
off-Broadway house. 

In its abbreviated Washington 
stand at the Shubert it grossed a 
meagre $2,500 in a house with a 
potential $20,000 for four shows, 
and decided to toss in the towel. 
The show collected unanimous 
pahs from the four local critics. 

Included in the show are Lynne 
Carter, Jan Britton, Bill Daye, Ty- 
tanic, Robbi Ross, Storm de Lar- 
verie, Dale Roberts and Gigi Allen.' 
Cancelled were stands in Montreal, 
Ttetroll. 'Cincinnati, Columbus and 
Pittsburgh- ; 



Lott Walters, who baa been- in Florida .recuperating since he re¬ 
linquished control of the Cafe de Paris, N. ¥., which subsequently 
folded, denies that permission by the American Guild of Variety Ar¬ 
tists to .open without bdnd was the result of his offer tp ran the open¬ 
ing night of his cafe as a benefit for the union’s sick and relief fund. 

In a letter to Variztt Walters stated that he had envisioned the 
cafe’s "opening as a benefit, originally, for the Damon Runyon Fund, 
but because of delay in acceptance, tendered the offer to AGVA with 
the amount to be donated to be decided by him. 

At another time, Walters stated, he told the union that he would be 
unable to open if he had to post a bond. Permission was granted, said 
Walters, so that 40 performers could obtain work in his spot. He did 
not disclose the amount the union received as a result of the "benefit. 

AGVA’s full support of the benefit was reflected In the fact that 
the union authorized the purchase of 10 tickets at $20 each for the 
Cafe de Paris preem, and the sick and relief fund was authorized to 
buy an additional $200 worth of ducats for this affair. Most of the un¬ 
ion’s hierarchy, based in New York, plus some wives, attended. 

Recent death of the widow of Sam Thall recalls the exploits of 
that head of the -RKO transportation department during the heyday 
of vaudeville. Thall, who handled all the details, was able to get 
complete units off for long arduous stands without a hitch. He was 
also regarded as a compendium of railroad schedules, rates and baggage 
| charges throughout the country, operating out of Chicago. 


Gy Reeves, a board member who presided at the executive com¬ 
mittee of the American Guild of Variety Artists which tried Paul 
Valentine last week, states that the board did not vote on the disquali¬ 
fication of exec committee members Joe Smith .<& Dale) and A1 Tuck¬ 
er, who made statements indicating prejudice against the defendant. 
Reeves said that it was rulings from the chair which resulted In bar¬ 
ling them from passing judgment on Valentine. Other members at 
the meeting say that Reeves leaned over backward in an effort to bo 
fair, and was impartial in all rulings. 

The annual Builders ShoW'in Minneapolis is having its customers 
—exhibitors and prospective ones—and friends choose the headliner 
for the 60-minute stag* end .of Its presentation. In an effort! to learn 
whom these exhibitors, etc^ Would'prefer to top the show’s OOminuto 
four-act offering, DOB questionnaires have been mailed out. Recip¬ 
ients are asked to check off their first five preferences from a list of 
30 headliners who, it's hoped, may be available. 

A promise is made that there’ll be every effort to obtain the act 
receiving the most votes. Headliners or, in lieu of them, prominent 
bands, for which the recipients are asked to specify their choices, in¬ 
clude Sammy Kaye, Guy Lombardo, Nat-King Cole, Earths Xitt and 
Burl Ives. 


Texas State!air Betting on Strom; 




Unit Review 


Jewd lo 

Washington, SCpt. 25. 


nahtias. Bfcfcard H. SmiK MwUBml 


_A Vcatre; 

__ Borer. At But M. 

Shubert Thootre. Sept. S5, *38; S4.f8 top. 

Cut: I*mo Cuter. Gigi Alien- Jmn 
Britton- Bill Dare, Storme de Larrerte, 
Sobbi Boa. Change Ochoa, Dele Bobeitg, 
Gene GeBewer, Mr. Tytanie. 


Dearie, “The Jewel Box Revue” 
is strictly rhinestone. But not; 
cheap, like In budget; just cheap, 
like in taste. Needing nothing but 
a complete rewrite of the lyrics to 
make them leer and a complete re¬ 
planning to make it a show for 
$4.95, this busload of 25 female 
impersonators -opened a “road tour” 
at the Shubert and dragged to 
the alley in four performances net. 

But don’t get us wrong, dearie, 
the costumes are spectacular and 
imaginative. Swooners. And 
Lynne Carter is. a talented turn, a 
comedian (or spell it comedienne) 
of authority. His Pearl Bailey is 
tres chic. Actually the humor, 
what they remembered to include, 
is quite discreet though Carter in 
the finale costume is inspired to 
hang a bunch of bananas you- 
know-where on the costume. 

One song goes, “It’s a long way 
from home to Paris and lucky 
Pierre.” Then again, dearie, “You 
[ can fly without wings; don’t be a 

woman if you can.” 

| Original music has been mostly 
omitted. Everybody just de¬ 
cided, why not burst out with such 
proven items as “76 Trombones,” 
“I Could Have Danced All Night’ 
(at Cherry Grove?) and—get this, 
postively — “My Old Kentucky 
Home.” 

The opening number seems self- 
conscious: “You Can’t Do A Show 
VI hout Girls.” Wouldn't you 
say, dearie?' Carp. 


‘Boriehf HV 2 G in 6, S.F. 

“Borscht Capades” grossed $11,- 
500 in six performances last week 
at the 1,550-seat Geary Theatre, 
San. Francisco. Mickey Katz : tops' 
the cast. 

Yiddish^slanted musical had a 
$42,000" potential Iflr that bouse At 


Dallas, Sept. 30. 

State Fair of Texas, opening its 
73d annbal 15-day ran Saturday 
(4), has a bigger entertainment 
lineup than ever before. Pull of 
name shows should, ‘better last 
year’s 2,340,967 attendance, which 
Tjai a drop from 1956’s gate pull 
of 2,672£5l 

In Die 187-acre showplace • the 
top show lure for Die Oct.'4-19 
ran is the touring company of 
“Music Man,” wiQi Forfrest Tucker 
and Joan Weldon, in the 4420-aeat 
State Fair Music Hall. Author 
Meredith Willson will be hero for 
the opening. Advance ducat sale 
has topped $100,000, and expo offi¬ 
cials expect about 4 $275,000 gross 
from the 24 performances, scaled 
at $4.9541-65. . 

“Jce. Capades,” the 18th edition, 
o-e of John H. Harris* touting 
icers, 23 showings in the Ice 
Arena during the expo’s run. Fro¬ 
zen water show annually draws 
more than 100,000, and again is 
scaled from $3.30-$1.50. 

One-nighter attractions Include 
Tennessee Ernie Ford, Molly Bee 
and other acts in the Cotton Bowl, 
Oct. 5 (at a fee); Tito Guizar head¬ 
ing a “Mexico Salute” Oct. 6; 
Eydie Gorme and soldier-boy Steve 
Lawrence (a maybe on him), Oct. 
9; Kirby Grant and Gloria Winters, 
Oct. 10; George. Gobel toplining a 
show on East Texas Day, Oct. 14; 
and Red Foley stars in a rustic 
rhythm show Oct. 15. All these 
layouts are in the Cotton Bowl. On 
Oct. 13 singer LaVern Baker and 
Buddy Johnson’s band give a free 
show' on the Magnolia Stage, cen¬ 
ter of the fairgrounds, celebrating 
the. fair’s annual Negro Achieve¬ 
ment Day ceremonies. 

Cotton. Bowl’s grid games In¬ 
clude Southern Methodist U.- 
Notre Dame, Oct. 4; Texas U.-Okla- 
homa U., Oct. 11, and Southern 
Methodist U.-Riee, Oct. 18. 


Betty Johnson ‘At Home’ 

Charlotte, N.C., Sept. 30. 

The thrush from Possum Walk 
Road—Charlotte’s Betty Johnson 
—will serve as “Honor Princess” of 
the Caroliuas Carrousel at Char¬ 
lotte this year. The tv performer 
and disker will ride in the parade 
Nov. 11 and- entertain-At the Royal 
Society of the Knights of Carrousel 
Ball and dinner. 

■ The former gospel singer who ap¬ 
pears regularly on-the Jack'Paar 
show got . her singing start, abr the 
soprano in ‘Charlotte’s- Johnson 
Family si)*geBW*)mo 



Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


J'fifHEff 


VAUDEVILLE 


57 


X-RAYING THE HAYSEED LOOPS 


--f 

Those Vegas Salaries Held to Be 
Killing Off Names (or Other Cafes 


HoUywood, Sept 30. 

Las Vegas, through skyrocketing 
performer salaries to unheard-of 
heights, has killed off the regular 
nitery circuit for rest of the coun¬ 
try, according to Dave Siegel, co¬ 
owner of the Cal-Neva Lodge at 
Lake Tahoe and former entertain¬ 
ment director of Vegas’ Flamingo 
Hotel. 

Only way operators elsewhere 
can survive, he* says, is on a per¬ 
sonal friendship basis with top 
talent, and even then the going is 
rough. 

There are only 20 or so “true” 
night club stars,” Siegel points 
out, and these are paid so much— 
$20,000 to $30,000 a week—by 
Vegas posh joints that they simply 
aren’t interested in bothering with 
many of the clubs across the coun¬ 
try and will appear only as a per¬ 
sonal favor to a club owneri 

Gambling city alone needs some 
50 top attractions each year, as¬ 
suming each makes a double go- 
arourid every 12 months, and 
“there just aren’t that many top 
acts,” Siegel notes. As a result, 
be says, hotels are paying lesser 
acts far more than they’re entitled 
to, thus making it difficult for 
other night spots, without gam¬ 
bling, to match the figure, even 
proportionately. 

Siegel predicts no new night 
dubs will be able to make the nut, 
no matter where they open, and 
advises, “Don't try to start one 
unless you hate money” 

Cal-Neva Lodge, open from June 
1 through Labor Day, this season 
booked Milton Berle, Tony Martin, 
Betty Grable, George Gobel, Gor¬ 
don MacRae, Ray Bolger and Pearl 
Bailey. Gambling, friendship with 
top talent and the fact Lake Tahoe 
is a vacation resort contribute to 
success of enterprise, Siegel de¬ 
clares. He pays about-one-third of 
what his stars receive in Vegas 
and explains that, before the 
Vegas competition set in, salaries 
were less than that. 

PH MAN SUES FOR 10G 
IN WILD WEST FIASCO 

Hollywood, Sept. 30. 

Publicist Hank Fine is demand¬ 
ing $10*497 assertedly due him for 
services rendered in a breach-of- 
contract suit InL.A. Supreme Court 
filed against Gene Autry, the Wild 
West Show Sc Rodeo and other 
defendants. He said he’d been 
hired to handle publicity for the 
ill-fated Wild West show at the 
Brussels World Fair from May 
through October of this year at 
$300 weekly plus expenses. 

Show ended as fiasco when coin 
ran out and the performers and 
others were left stranded in the 
Belgian capital. 

Mac Willie Exec Mgr. 

Of Havana’s Tropicana 

Memphis, Sept. 30. 

J. L. (Jim) Mac Willie, Dallas 
and Memphis sportsman and night 
club owner, has been named execu¬ 
tive manager of the swank Trop¬ 
icana in Havana. Mac Willie who 
has fronted some of Dallas’ and 
.Memphis’ top spots for the past 10 
years, Will skipper the Cuba casino 
and handle entertainment and ex¬ 
cursions for Americans shuttling 
over from Miami. 

Mac Willie is lining up several 
U.S. names for the coming season 
and will make several trips to 
New York and Hollywood for tal¬ 
ent, he said here before planing 
to Havana. 


‘Holiday’ Big 56G, Peoria 

Peoria, HI., Sept. 30. 

“Holiday on - Ice” mopped up 
here list week with a $56,000 
gross for five days at the Bradley 
field house, topping previous rec¬ 
ord for the 7,700-aeater by some 
$ 20 , 000 ; < . 

Stand had a $3.50 top and ^ was 
promotedjJtajrc. Sid; Pag* s ’i 


7G-String Robbery 

Detroit, Sept. 30. 

A.safe containing $7,000 was 
taken from the Gayety bur¬ 
lesque, manager Charles Rob¬ 
inson reported to police. In¬ 
vestigation showed a small 
safe had been taken from a 
larger wall safe. 

The money represented sal¬ 
aries for the performers as 
well as a night’s receipts. 


Cafe Paree Quits 
After D.C. Quickie 

Washington, Sept. 30. 

The Cafe Paree, Washington’s 
pnettiest and newest night club, 
didn’t last long. It opened May 15 
with Zsa Zsa Gabor and Joey 
Adams and closed Sept. 20 with 
Cab Calloway. 

Owner Harry Snyder, who said 
he had been ill and couldn’t look 
after the nitery as he would have 
liked, blamed the financial failure 
on the fact that Washington will 
riot support a third night club 
booking expensive name acts. 

Lee Zeiger’s Casino Royal and 
Allan Bralove’s Blue Room of the 
Shoreham Hotel are going into the 
new season with names, but both 
the Mayflower and Statler Hotels 
have discontinued the practice. 

Snyder spent $35,000 to redec¬ 
orate the former Coral Room to 
make the Cafe Paree the best-look¬ 
ing club in town. There was no 
cover charge, but there was a $5 
minimum. It lost money from the 
start. 

The club will soon be auctioned 
by the landlord, Congress Develop¬ 
ment Inc.* described by Snyder as 
a large New York construction 
firm also owning several apartment 
projects in the same southeast sec¬ 
tion of Washington as the Cafe 
Paree. 

Snyder owns the downtown Blue 
Mirror which makes a go with 
pretty girls, leaving name acts to 
others. 


DeWOLFE-GOGI GRANT 
PALMER HOUSE’S PEAK 

Chicago, Sept. 30. 

Just-departed Bill DeWolfe-Gogi 
Grant bill collared the year’s best 
biz so far at the Palmer House’s 
Empire Room. Plushery played 
the pair three weeks. It’s pointed 
out, however, that season’s high 
probably would have been notched 
by George Gobel, here in August, 
but the Chi-spawned comic only 
played a week. 

Jose Greco, popular multi¬ 
repeater in the room, is current;' 
with Marguerite Piazza set for 
Oct. 23. 

Eydie Adams Revue On 
Tex Casa Manana Slate 

Fort Worth, Sept. 30. 

The Eydie Adams Revue has re¬ 
placed Don Cornell on the schedule 
of fall attractions for Casa Manana 
here on Oct. 30 and Nov. 1. With 
Miss Adams will be Pete Pederson, 
Landre & Verna and the Casa 
Manana Voices. 

Other attractions on the sched¬ 
ule are George Liberace for Nov. 
13-15, an Ice show produced by Ed 
Leary for Nov. 25-29 and Roger 
Williams for Dec. 11-13. 

Casa Mana plans a series of win¬ 
ter productions to begin Jan. 19, 
but details and names of attrac¬ 
tions have not been announced. 

“Shoestring Revue” yesterday 
-(Mon.) for a two-week stand. In the 
cast are Dorothy Greener; Jori 
Remus* G. Wood, Mildred Cook, 
.Bill McCutcheon, Faye DeWitt, 
Paul Sanchez Marlene Dell and 
Todd Jackson, Ben Bagley and 
Breck Wall art prodijfgFs^ & s 


The current agricultural fair 
• season is causing a reappraisal of 
the value of names on the rural 
show circuits. The losses sustained 
by the Ohio State Fair at Colum¬ 
bus, which wound $70,000 in the 
red, is one of the reasons for the 
renewed research into the feasi¬ 
bility of using high-priced names 
on the rural routes. 

At the same time, presence of 
Bob Hope and Arthur . Godfrey 
boosted the Indiana State Fair to 
a record $118,698. The grosses 
throughout the country have been 
somewhat uneven this year, de¬ 
spite the fact that recession hasn’t 
hit the farmers, which as a class 
have had an exceedingly profitable 
year because of zooming food 
prices. 

Fact that fair grosses can be 
uneven in this year indicates to 
showmen that some renewed 
thought must be given the subject. 
Opinions have been expressed that 
the majority of the fair shows play 
to captive audiences. At many 
fairs, the gross doesn’t vary too 
much no matter what the grand¬ 
stand attractions are. It’s also 
been suggested that the physical 
layouts of most fairs are such that 
the bulk of the people hanker 
only for a palce to sit down and 
rest following’ the foot-wearying 
job of looking t£ all the exhibits. 

Some fairmeri have taken the 
view that a good playable show is 
all that’s needed, and names 
should be used-only when the gate 
shows signs of cracking. 

There are several non-name 
shows that have toured fairs which 
are being offered to arenas and 
auditoriums on the basis that they 
did tumaway biz in the hinter¬ 
lands. Bulk of these are being 
turned down inasmuch as the 
arena men take the view that 
virtually anything can sell at coun¬ 
try showshops, and selling this 
kind of show in the city is an en¬ 
tirely different proposition. The 
arena men have been saying that 
these shows have little appeal on 
their own, but did business merely 
because of its location. 

It’s expected that fairmen In 
many situations, are likely to at¬ 
tempt some degree r* measuring 
basic boxoffice and attendance be¬ 
fore names hit their circuits. On 
this basis they may be able to de¬ 
termine the additional value of 
headliners, if any, and are most 
likely to buy accordingly next 
year. 

Skelton Bowing lire’ 

In LA. Topping Show 
At Ritz With David Rose 

Hollywood, Sept 30. 

Red Skelton will top a show at 
the newly renovated Ritz Theatre 
here for producer Harry ZeYiri, 
Oct. 30. It’s titled “The Clown and 
The Baton,” with David Rose and 
his orch supporting. It’ll be 
Skelton’s first live appearance in 
Los Angeles apart from benefits. 

Comic is committed for two and 
a half weeks on a guarantee and 
percentage basis, but may hold 
over. He’ll be preceded by several 
opening acts, hot yet chosen. Skel¬ 
eton also is doing his weekly 
CBS teleseries but under a sked of 
part live and part film. The filmed 
shows are expected to be used 
during his Ritz appearance. 

Zevin hopes to follow Skelton 
with another one-man turn by 
Liberace but deal is still in talking 
stage. Ken Murray's new “black¬ 
outs” opens Christmas Day. 


Sheraton Veeps Moore 

Robert L. Moore, who has been 
head of the Sheraton Hotel chain’s 
public relations division for the 
past three years, has been named 
vice president of the Sheraton 
Central Credit Club. 

Moore, a former television show 
packager, is author of “The Pitch¬ 
man,” a nogel about the video 
packaging business. i 


t 


AGVA Throws Curb at Bright With 
Reactivation of Grievance Committee 

•----—f 


Guy’s Wham 77G, S.D. 

Mitchell, S. D., Sept. 30. 

Guy Lombardo, with $77,- 
000, set the highest gross in 
67 years of festival .shows at 
the Corn Palace here, Sept 
21-27. 

Lombardo played only 12 - 
shows and new record tops 
that of Lawrence Welk for 15 
shows in 1954. Supporting acts 
included the Modemaires, 
Johnny Haymer and Bobby 
Winters. 



Much Biz for Gls 


London, Sept. 30. 

The successful military club 
in European military posts have a 
problem of keeping down the at¬ 
tendance because of limited 
capacity. Maj. George Perry, man¬ 
ager of the Gen Von Steuben 
Hotel, Wiesbaden,, which runs a 
club under Air Force control ex¬ 
plains . that he has to turn down i 
some excellent buys inasmuch as j 
the membership rolls exceed the 
| capacity of the cafe. i 

For example, says Perry, there 
was a chance of buying Sarah j 
Vaughan for $1,700, but since the 
club accommodates only 350, the 
entire roster of 1,000’ members and 
wives could have converged to at 
one time. Best practice, he con¬ 
cludes is to book solid British and 
American acts. This nitery and the 
Landstuhl, a club for non-com¬ 
missioned officers, are the only 
! niteries offering entertainment 
! every evening. 

The Von Steuben’s entertain- 
j ment bill runs around $100,000 an- 
! nually with orchestras taking the 
major slice of the budget. The 
ballroom band gets $1,800 to $2,500 
monthly; cocktail lounge orch, 
from $1,000 to $1,250 monthly; and 
the string quartet in the dining 
room about $600 a month. He 
buys the orchestras from the Ger¬ 
man agencies and also buys a few 
acts from reputable Deutsche per- 
-(Continued on page 62) 


USO IN N.Y. STARTING . 
DRIVE FOR $1,600,000 

The USO in New York City be¬ 
gins its appeal for funds today 
(Wed.) in a pitch for $1,600,000. 
Monies derived from this campaign 
will be used to support the USO’s 
267 clubs and finance the enter¬ 
tainment troupes playing overseas 
installations. 

USO shows this year will play 
an estimated 2,350 bases through¬ 
out the world to an audience of 
more than 1,000,000 Gls. As part 
of the USO drive, a preview thea¬ 
tre benefit for “The Girls in 509” 
will be held Oct. 14 at the Belasco 
Theatre. 

Scots Guards $11,000 
At Troy Field House 

Troy, N.Y., Sept. 30. 

The Grenadier Guards and 
Massed Pipers and Dancers of the 
Scots Guards drew an audience of 
almost 5,000 to the R.P.I. Field 
House here last week for a gross 
of $11,000 at $3.50 top. While a 
very substantial figure, it was $3,- 
200 below the Black Watch Guards 
take in the college arena a year 
ago. H. L. (Jack) Garren, Field 
House managing director, attrib-r 
uted the difference to the fact the 
1957 performance was on Sunday 
afternoon, a more ideal time. 

It was the second big gross reg¬ 
istered at the Field House this fall, 
the first being a $59,000 week 
(nine performances) of the 17th 
edition of John H. Harris’ “Ice Ca- 

r.K. 


One of the first efforts to curb 
the power of the present adminis¬ 
tration of the American Guild of 
Variety Artists was completed at 
the two-day executive committee 
meeting held last week in New 
York. A motion was passed unani¬ 
mously to revive a grievance com¬ 
mittee to hear complaints of union 
employees and of discharged 
AGVA employees desiring to make 
a final pitch for retention of their 
jobs. This committee was disband¬ 
ed some years ago. 

The move was introduced by 
newly elected first veepee Rajah 
Raboid. This motion precludes any 
possibility of national administra¬ 
tive secretary Jackie Bright asking 
the forthcoming national board 
meeting to extend the unlimited 
firing power granted him at the 
June convention in Mexico City. 

Spurring passage of the motion 
was the serving of a complaint and 
summons on Bright by Barry Hous¬ 
ton, former organizer in Detroit. 
At Bright’s recommendation, no 
hearing was given him. He’s ask¬ 
ing $25,000. 

At the time of Houston’s dis¬ 
missal, the move was protested by 
Penny Singleton, now president¬ 
elect of the union, who saw in this 
instance a repeat of the Dick Jones 
incident Jones was also fired 
without a hearing and sued in 
court, obtaining a judgment of 
$110,000 against Bright and Jack 
Irving, Bright’s predecessor. Al¬ 
though, the jury assessed Bright 
and not the union, AGVA picked up 
the $20,000 settlement tab for 
Bright only. At that time, Miss 
Singleton wrote some scathing let¬ 
ters to Bright on the subject ex¬ 
pressing fear that a suit would 
I result. 


CHEZ PAREE VETOES 
COLE’S CHI CONCERT 

Chicago, Sept. 30. 

Nat Cole's Orchestra Hall char¬ 
ity concert, slated for Oct. 5, has 
been cancelled at the insistence of 
the Chez Paree, where singer is 
currently starring. A move to re¬ 
schedule the concert to follow the 
Chez date was also kiboshed by 
Dave Halper, the nitery’s co¬ 
owner. 

Cole said he was willing to do 
the concert for the benefit of a 
Negro medical college in Nash¬ 
ville, although earlier it had been 
touch-and-go whether he would 
because of uncertainty as to how 
much the school would realize from 
the affair. 

When he finally consented to 
topline the program, it was under¬ 
stood Cole wanted $7,000 and as¬ 
surances the medical institution 
would realize at least 40% of the 
gross. Concert was a nromotion of 
Harry Zelzer’s Allied Arts, and 
original deal set by Chez Artists 
(unconnected w»th the cafe, and 
headed bv Phil Consolo of the 
former adagio team of .Console & 
Melba) called for a $5,000 “fee.” 
But one point at issue was a re- 
Dort that although such a sum was 
invoked. Cole was to appear 
gratis. 

Zelzer. in New York at week’s 
end. was to reset the benefit with 
another headliner. 

Vegas Riviera Wooing 
‘Haggis’ Quiz for Xmas 

The Riviera Hotel, Las Vegas, 
aside from looking to video as a 
source of attractions, feels that rat¬ 
ings and scandal notwithstanding, 
it wants a giveaway show during 
the Christmas season. Sammy 
Lewis, inn’s booker, is negotiating 
for the presentation of “Haggis 
Baggis” at the hotel around the 
Christmas season. 

Current plan is to pitch the show 
as a possible source of getting a 
supply of Christmas gifts. Ella 
Fitzgerald will be co-headliner on 
this display. 

The Riviera has also signed Phil 
Silvers to come in with the cast of 

Mi M 21 - 





ss 


VACBEVIIXK 


PVutiffff 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


Rodeo, Toplining Roy Rogers, Gallops 
With Big Roundup of Vaude Toms 


B 7 LEONARD TRAUB1 

The rodeo gt New York’s Madi¬ 
son Square Garden seems to be 
fielding more acts as counterpoints 
to the competitive events than has 
obtained in recent years. There is 
also more time given to these per¬ 
formers. 

Last year’s chute & corral classi- 
que had the Lone Ranger and 
Lassie topping the bilL Obviously 
this didn’t work out either at the 
wickets or in the arena, because 
Roy Rogers has been called back 
for his umpteenth appearance with 
the cowboy cavalcade which opened 
last week (25) for a ride to Oct 13. 

Rogers still has the name, the 
dazzling trappings and the type of 
folksy showmanship and chatter to 
score at the b.o. The Garden needs 
him on the marquee to square that 
$6 top. And since he is one film 
and television cowboy who also has 
an act and has long been associ¬ 
ated with the roundups, it's just 
been a question of whether to go 


about dominated tha rodeo for the 
last couple of decades* 

Frank Moore, longtime resident 
manager of the cowpoke' extrava¬ 
ganza, has provided an array of 
acts, in addition to Rogers' ■ con¬ 
tributions, that’s appropriate and 
plays well between the orthodox 
contests' of man against the beasts. 
And all of them have that solid 
kid appeal. Sid Sc Barbara Moore 
offer a laugh-raising session with 
a quintet of pooches sliding down 
a chute to a leaping tick. The 
county fair leval is further repre¬ 
sented by the -‘Beeswax” Taxi¬ 
meter Mule with, a couple of 
clowns working the stubborn ani¬ 
mal for yocks. 

The major spread comes toward 
the show’s end when Rogers and 
his troupe, including his nag 
Trigger, Pat Brady arid the Sons of 
the Pioneers, head a longish ses¬ 
sion that takes in Homer Garrett's 
Hollywood Square Dancers (8) and 
Baudy’s Greyhounds. and Monkeys, 
j The mixed group of terperS are 


judges, Todd Whatley, Bill George 
and John Pogue,. 

The Sarly curtain on some days 
seems to be working out-well for 
family groups. On Sunday night 
[.the start is at 6 o’clock, and on 
Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday it’s 
7:30, with the regular 8:30 time on 
Friday-Saturday. There are no 
Monday performances except on 
Oct 13, holidan^^. holdover from 
Columbus Day, hfethe 6 p.m, slot 
Kid prices are;- halved for the 
matinees (Wednesday, Friday) and 
Tuesday-througl^hursday nights. 


With him or his predecessor. Gene; fln p examples in-that idiom and the 


Autry. Rogers and Autry have just 


The SINGING VENUS 



SCOTT 

Currently 

RIVERSIDE 

HOTEL 

RENO, NEV. 


JULY ROM A!NE 
and CLAIRE 

"Delightfully 
Different" 
Now Appearing 

TITO’S 
Palma de 
MALLORCA 

2nd Rotum 
En|i|tffl«nt 

7/ianJu to 
A. TAVEL, Paris 





“THE COMEDIAN 

Tfco Only Rdal Monthly 
PROFESSIONAL GAG SERVICE 
THE LATEST — THE GREATEST — 
THE MOST-UP-TO-DATE5T 
Now tn Its 97th Issuo, containing 
storlos, ono-IIntrs/ poomottas, sons 
ttttss, hocklors, audlonco stuff, mono- 
loss, parodlo* double sass, bits. 
Ideas, Intros/ Impressions and hn* 
personations, political. Interruptions. 
Thews hts the Day, Humorous 
Views of the Ntws, etc. *2$ yearly. 
S Yr*. $51—SInsla Issues $3 

Poreisn: SW Yr.—3 Yrs. $10 
SInsle Issuer $4—He C.O.D.'s 

■ILLY GLASON 
M3 W. 14 tu New York 19 


YVONNE MORAY 

41" tall-Slnstns Comedienne 

The EMBERS, McCurdy Hotel 

KvoRsvflle, Indian* 
ASSOCIATED SOOKING CORF. 


Baudy turn is a solid, novelty in 
which the greyhounds serve as 
mounts for the capers of funny 
chimps. 

At the pre-intermission, Rogers, 
has a couple of numbers, in segue; 
first with his halite ecole Trigger 
Jr. and then with a beautifully 
broken octet of Liberty palominos. 
He rates rounds of salvos from the 
audience. In the later display 
Rogers pours on. the* country Sc 
western stuff vocally, aided by Pat 
Brady’s spotlighted community 
sing and the sagebrush songs of the 
Sons of the Pioneers. * Since 
Rogers’ wife and c6-performer 
Dale Evans is not with the show 
this year, he called on her from a 
box and she came into the arena 
to da “Somewhere.Over the Rain¬ 
bow.” Rogers might be faulted on 
some of that religioso stuff pitched 
at a thrill-happy rodeo audience, 
but the crowd appeared to go for it 
Exhibition Section 


Tree Shows’ 

Continued from page 1 

if all the hostels are running at 
capacity. 

Lansburgh thus comes full circle 
in his inauguration locally of a 
borscht belt type of operation. He 
was first to offer rooms-with-meals, 
plus hotel divertissment round-the- 
clock package plan some years ago 
at the Versailles and Sherry Fron- 
tenac. That is now the basis of op¬ 
erations for all but three of the 
top luxury establishments. 

10G Salaries—Maybe More 

Fees for the one-night, one-show 
deals (with suites on the bouse for 
a longer stay), range from $4,000 
to $10,000. The latter figure will 
probably go higher; dickerings 
with Jerry Lewis have him at an 
risking price of $15,000. Tentative 
lineup has Tommy Sands, as a 
Christmas entry, Frankie Laine,' 
Georgia Gibbs, Victor Barge, Phil 
Silvers, Patti Page, Mischa Elman,*] 
Jose Iturbi‘(dependent on his re¬ 
turn from Spain), Anna Maria 
Alberghetti and Ricky Nelson. In 
the pltched-for group are Lewis, 
Bob Hope, Red Skelton, Danny 
Kaye, Nat King 
Mathis, Polly 



Cole, Johnny 
Eddie Fisher 
Harry Bela- 
igned for two 


and Judy Ga 
fonte has 
days. 

It’s expected"' 
of. the final- 
from those 
mitments, whar’^ 
jaunt south for .a one-shot, linger 
for a couple of days in the sun and 
return in time for their weekly 
show rehearsals. This vista- of vital 
attractions tends to create opinion 


a good many 
Lgs will come 
ith video com- 
[Us • can make 


among some operators that, in the 

In the exhibition section are the «*" 

“(T- Vtmt.Vo WP 11 ; eluded to allow for the new to the 
area" performers with reputations. 


Lightning “C” Ranch’s well syn¬ 
chronized horseback quadrille, 
again led by Everett E. Colborn, 
for many years the show’s manag¬ 
ing director; and a barrel race by 
the Eastern Guest. Ranch Girls, a 
tame affair that’s strictly , a filler. 
(Trick riding and roping have long 
since been shelved, along with the 
razzle-dazzle basketball on horse¬ 
back). Rogers takes a turn around 
the arena to shake hands With the 
kids and give them opportunity to 
pat his nag. It’s his characteristic 
way of “mixing” with the- custo¬ 
mers. 

Through the show and especially 
in the steer riding event, clowns 
D* J. (Kajun Kid) Gaudin and Buck 
LeGrand raise the jpoof -with their 
antics versus the '’Brahma bulls. 
Some of their escapades come 
pretty close to disaster stemming 
from the angry steers. 

The contests consisting as usual 
of bareback bronc riding, calf top¬ 
ing, saddle bronc riding, steer 
wrestling, bull riding and the end¬ 
up wild horse race whammo, totals 
up to a $78,000 purse, which with 
entries added goes into a higher 
hoodie for the cowpokes to shoot 
at. There are fewer contestants 
' coming out of the chutes for each 
event. This makes for a snappier, ] 
streamlined, and no-nonsense show. 
In other years-the succession of 
competing stalwarts was almost 
endless. 

As per tradition, the music is by 
James Clmmeron’s .Cowboy Band 
which works with its characteristic 
authority, and this year the an¬ 
nouncer is Pete Logan, who’s lib¬ 
eral with explanatory palaver. The 
arena secretary is Cecil Jones; 


MAL1NI 

fe* CMdaM « vary le cc siifa f 14 weeks (Jeaa to Soptomfer) 4000 
Eillet too* wfrti appear e eces at Ugh dais Hotels, ToAuihrlaL Bapqeete 
and TdoWdto le Ceaedo (9**bac-Alberto) New York City and New 
York State, New Haaipeklre, Yenaoet, etc. 

At preieet, eeHl October 30. Labs Placid, N. Y„ for a wo H c o m od rest. 
New U. S. A. Address: CHALET MAL1N1. Lake Placid, N. Y. 

Dtroction: MARK J. LEDDY - LEON NEWMAN 
48 West 48tfc Street, Hew York 34, N. Y. 


Oddly enough, Lansburgh • has 
made a deal with Lou Walters to 
run the Casanova Room for lavish 
production setup identified with 
the yet impresario. It is evident 
that the young hotelman feels 
there is room for everyone and 
that his “for guests only” enter¬ 
tainment will not affect the regular 
run of business around the Beach 
cafe circuit 

Rivals’ Views 

Reaction among the town’s 
hoteliers is mixed on that point. 
One boniface points to several 
names on the list as acts he had 
been negotiating for; another says 
he already has several of them set 
for season dates, but does not feel 
the Lansburgh use of their talents 
can affect their draw values if the 
dates do not run too closely to¬ 
gether. No matter, all are proceed¬ 
ing according to annual plan. 

With Frank Sinatra set for a 
two-weeker in the LaRonde in mid¬ 
season, the Fontainebleau’s Beq 
Novack.is oh the verge of expand¬ 
ing the room 750-800 capacity. 
He has bids aU£;for Jack Benny, 
Sammy Davis; Mjgd Skelton, Dean 
Martin, PoUyj'^Bergen, among 
others: And he/$&building a 5,000- 
seat auditorium^#* be ready in the 
spring, in whicl|pe can spot, if he 
so decides, toelgjpiames next year, 
at a guarantee^Qtainst percentage. 
That’s in the future, however. 

Harry Mufson of the Eden Roc 
has his money-in-the-bank return¬ 
ee Joe E. -Lewis set, plus with 
Eydie Gorme, As with Novack, 
this is the one firm commitment, 
but there are others pending that 
will, if confirmed, wind him with 
a strong lineup to engage the 
competition; with an 800-seat ca¬ 
pacity, his. Cafe Pompeii can be a 
heavy grosser, as attested in for¬ 
mer “big” seasons. 

Tioeh Snubs Names 

Larry Tisch; the Americana’s 
top man, has switched from “star? 
thinking. He’f commited Sid Kul- 
ler to write a topical revue for the 
Bal Masque, with Selma Marlowe 
Harris producing. It is set for a 
four-week run* beginning in mid- 
December, at *.budget that allows 
for strengthehing of draw values 
with a name. If business so de¬ 
mands, Tisch, however, is keeping' 
fingers crossed that such a move 


will not be necessary. He took a 
bath last season, when even the 
$25,000 toppers couldn't*bring IfieJ 
room ihto the black side of'tye 
ledger. 

The most successful : hotdrcafe 
has been the Lucerne’s Club Cha¬ 
let. Owner Oscar Markovichi some 
88 weeks ago, installed another*] 
Selma Marlowe .Harris idea—’‘.‘Ha¬ 
vana Mardi Gras.” With ' Diosa, 
Costello in the top slot, it has kept, 
running, in-season and off-season. 
A new edition will take up the 
winter run. 

The new Diplomat Country Club 
in Hollywood opens with Tony 
Martin. There are others, on itk 
set list for the winter, who appear 
also on the Lansburgh lineup, but 
managing. -director George E. Fox 
does not feel this .will hurt.; hi* 
newery’s nitery' The patronage to 
be drawn will come from the Hol- 
lywood-Ft. Lauderdale-Palm Beach 
sector with Miami Beach trade ex¬ 
pected to be based on a “let’s see 
this year's hotel.” 

Saxony’s Roof Nitery 
The Saxony has its expansion In 
final stages. Undergoing a com¬ 
plete rebuild; with addition of 150 
rooii^ and a rooftop bffe-^firsf of 
its: kind tn tiie Be»tm-^to be called 
the -Ivory Tower, entertainment 
policy is still to be. firmed up; a 
name band idea, has been mulled. 
Return of the Geisha Girl Revue 
is a dim prospect-, of last season. 
What is being looked for is some¬ 
thing novel, in keeping with the 
layout, arrived ‘at. by a glass-en¬ 
closed elevator- that runs up.the 
front of the building and pro¬ 
vides an intriguing . look at' the 
Miamis. 

Only big indie club will be the 
Latin Quarter. E. M. Loew and 
Eddie Risman are setting up as 
heavy a* name lineup as possible. 
Signed are Betty Grahle and So-, 
phie Tucker with’the Bitz Bios, on' 
the possibility list. With Lou Wal¬ 
ters now at the Deauville, Lou 
Chester, landlord of the. Cafe de 
Paris (ne Cppa City) has shown 
no signs of planning a relighting. 
this winter with a new producer- 
operator. The neighboring Cotton,: 
Club, formerly ; the ’ Beachcomber/ 
will definite -be turned into a 
bowling centre, .City council has. 
okayed the license for this first-of- 
its-kind. pn the Beach. 

Tlenty for Ererjbody’ 

Wiser and calmer heads among 
the cafe contingent feel the draw¬ 
off of 4,000 prospects three times 
4 week is hot going to. hurt those 
hotels that have a prime attrac¬ 
tion.. They figure that with oyer 
100,000 tourists around during * 
season-height week, there’s plenty 
to draw from; they also point out 
the possibility that entertainment 
wants will be whetted among the 
4,000 Deauville attendees, who are 
getting it all for free and will 
still have the dough budgeted tor 
a night on the town. 

The intime all-nitery group 
stands to benefit most from that 
latter prospect. A Murray Frank¬ 
lin's with its wacky shows, easy- 
dbes-it atmosphere and libations, 
is illustrative of this type of op¬ 
eration which, even when things 
are rough, seems to attract enough 
of a mixture of regulars and visit¬ 
ors to keep going at a profitable 
pace. 



New Orleans, Sept. 30. 

The Moulin Rouge, Bourbon St. 
nitery; closed its doors Wednesday 
(24) after its beer and liquor per¬ 
mits .were suspended by the state 
alcoholic beverage control board 
and the state board of tax appeals. 

The action of the boards would 
prevent Elmo BadOn from obtain¬ 
ing beer or -liquor permits' fOr-the 
[ operation of a night spot bar at any 
time in the future. 

. The permits were in. the name of 
Gaspar. Lachute. However, Badon 
was identified as the operator of 
the Moulin Rouge during the re¬ 
cent Federal court trial In :which 
he was convicted of smuggling 109 
bottles of whiskey. 


ATLANTA’S KKA-ZEE BULL 

.. Atlanta, Sept. 30. 

Newest addition to downtown 
AtlantaYstririg of dine-dance spots 
is Kra-Zee Bull. Spot Ik operated 
by Chick Hedrick who filso runs 
Domino Loupge in the Imperial 
Hotel. - - 


Poari Bailey's Dates 

Pearl Bailey J has signed for 
pair of dates in Negro theatres. She 
will play the Apollo, N. Y.^Feh. 6 
and the Howard, Washington, 
Feb. 20. ' 

Miss Bailey Will precede these 
stands with an engagement at the 
Chase Hotel, St. Louis, Jap. 14. 


a>. fun-master 

PROFESSIONAL 
eOMEDY MATERIAL 
for oli .TtoatrfeaN 
Sarvtc* liMl Efari* 


M GH PH** Win *1.M Pmtof* 

• Ff Hw: *r34 —^ M to r $4« 
a * Paradv Eoo to . For Ek. .. . Ill • 
a 4Alo«kaut E ll in For Ek. .. *35 a 

a Minstrot Eudfot .325 a 

How to Mottor «t»o. Co r amowlat 
$3 Nr CtN 

No^OJFs -Always Ofoo*: 

SILLY GLASON i 

ME W. S4th Sl. H.rXw If tlrcto.r-1131 
AVE TEACH BMCEEINaaOd COMEDY) 

- - - - - -’nil You) 


« Eoal 


CARROLL 

A 
N 
D 

Comedy - Makmdny 

HEAL CAFE ENTERTAINERS 


' Piano 


NO ROOM 

TOO BIG OR TOO SMALL 

7810 Hardtog Av*. 

, Mlaad Baack. Flo. 


fXPERDKED PHCTOR 
and BUSINESS WUUUXR 

Currantlr Anlftant to Ooworal Man- 
a#ar of ladurtrial llia w a. add FuWlc 
Eolation* ama l n tl oa. aUkr- «H or- 
ranaomonts tor afaflad and fittOftala- 
mont. Soil oxtilMt «F « * 0 / arron«o 
auWWfy.. 

Frorlously assodatod orfiti RadlnYV 
Station as Assistant Fro*ram Dlroctar; 
axpofianca In continuity, nroduct i ow. 
Eookin* a*#nt and ku i lna w mono oar 
for aoouiar orchottra anE.woU kn*wn 
radio disk (oefcay. Intorostod; In yosl- 
tton alliod witti show kuslnott. 

Writ# Box, VV 3*9, VARIETY 
1S4 Wast 4tt*i |t^ Now York 34, N. Y. 


IF YOU NEED 

Promotional^ Work Dooo 

Call DA 3-S732 (»-S) 

•r Writ* Bax 2494 


Now York 17, N. T. 


The DEEP RIVER BOYS 

Starring HAWtY DOUGLASS 

Opoolog Ififb latotoariaaol Toar 


WooR koatonlnf Soft. » 
EMPIRE THEATRE 
NEWCASTLE, ENOLAND 



Dirodioo: WttUAM MOtttt AO P dCT 

Pom. Mgr.i B> nfeOBY ... 

gi 111 h mu iii iiimiHi h in iniiiiiii muJiiiiffioiTn 



GALLOWAY 


M«t/ BILL MITTLlA tMf ttoodoafi Now Yat* 




t'SnlETf 


ygo 

CANADA’S 

SPECTACULAR 

NEW THEATRE 


THE 'k&ti/ l-fi^RT OF 
CANADIAN 
SHOW BUSINESS"! 


& i 




O'KEEFE 

AUDITORIUM! 

TORONTO, CANADA 






MEET HUGH WALKER 

the man who’s 
Managing Director of 
. the spectacular new 
O'Keefe Auditorium. 

Contact him now, he 
Is booking shows, 
concerts, conventions, 
lectures, TV and Radle ‘ 
broadcasts—for the 
I960 season. 

Write or phone:- 
Hugh P.Walker, 

Managing Director* . 

O'Keefe Auditorium, 

Toronto, Canada, 

Telephone; 

Em 6-7211* 









TSWWT 


■.vRJSYIER^S 


P JBUEfx 


October 1, 1958 


A«l»afMdtr I* Arffcoto and rt lu, l>l Vegu, -f has "Autumn Xopcerttf/^ "That£ I . Sharehav, Wash. 

ss*„?,rs-s.'S K ”s; SS3H£=H“ ■£ srS’Sfsl »•“- _ ; ■ ■ 

mum. voSs Y ^ ^5£St~ «»**« *toed 3* J>« Atfe* ^ ■ Gtogla GQte im .a late toics 

' -■- - mmgcmextt hy FMl Mood*; fcfAwjrfi *- a 5£ fa hPcn to Shartham Hotel*! Blue 

Current bookings! SaaaJLeven- ... . - . . larricshg Pus* Sherraafc $kJ*W- to- aKhongh the Trench, law «*«?♦ f*vocita witery of a 3ocal 

son at the Cocoanut teebaie RivergHto* Rtom „ ' flwm. jtaiftjfnT a«*»*! anriefr witichlsBai-esaeciallTkeen 

of the few times Ambassador Hotel Reno, Sept.25. ! -■■■ata*. ■ *n to get to customer* *o : toutnight dubbing. Nut it was 

entertainment toectar^M Lampe Bunninger, Son^.Sco^'^arlatsj Betty GraH*brings her mohair! sKng with her %o * Oatomedley; £***£*?* «P«^n*sdght tot Al- 
has put a stapdup com edian In to, ^ giIl Clifford Orch £»>; $tf gle musical tt*ft beck into to foei limp lor wit .of Unguiattc! y Bt«3ove had chosen_* m 31 for 
the big room astop minimum. •: Paiated Desert? »n*n Wheel ftis togetotnega. She^. he followed by= a ttract ive roqm whiriL iailso 

That it is juiacciffaje«m»t the) *“** _ isure to do he» hnstnew ton? Howan * Martin Oct 3 for two]f £“»£»**££*5®?“*“* to fat 

tasterf .rthecttrrent^MWiaeMMr-IAiaii**^*^®^ *to* wa^Ai -Werts. -. Quin. | WgS «n lit «9cu »> 

which is the bulwark «f the? *; ~T ,T~T ZZi„tT\r Jri. 1,^ The %r» jiiifflTIV thr aimr as! - _ Mounts. 

§■&*M»*W. T.r«rt' 

after. It is lievenson’s first west ; aflapa liTVpik ifn whtrh Miss! 4 c»nf on -®ty *nd energy. She proves the 

coast nitery date aai he ohy ia u s i y . ^ ^ ^ ^ i'iast 25 minotes; Grable is irmly ^oeen ^Bun^ayj The Hi-Iite*. 13 ) Bobby Brandt tan f* u * 5 

»«“■*? i regular «da «»«“* betore^he TotV£££t£Si£.' D«sTl. *bel. C^oSSe i 

that i£jr8?*&Z t 

limited to periodic ejcplosions.lt to a ^etter^aMrerage^ 21m CHcl^Md gets stolid bacBn*' <B, ‘ * L2S € ° ^ T ‘ wifi?* 

Z^oS^Sw^h s^ AHcc “'JP*' 1 ? n ae :®“° : Mtery cir - a toe^up on cusiomer kudos f2?ed 

Bats mfitts her Americam. bow as' c ^y lrt ._ i _ per fast —jfW ^ ^ Joim h®^* 11 **» Hi-Idtes, ringing male her large audience.giVes her loud 

the intro act with accompanist fiefies detecSon Orexet iSl HaS NateF # * too, and Bobby Brandt, the metic- acceptance. It is her beat number, 

guitarist UMck (eg) Neumann, as- S^cli^emwffla as jrnll- wmw 5 . - ?av . hlous..tap dancer; for a 65-minute and it must please' Jplson fans to 

“nsou's family chronicles Z$3t S fM Ss oS Sj^“ ^ 

t^^from tS s^de^^d h^-wrg^i unusual and ray funny.net. . Toronto on the Worth.itoerican ^ . foj- icer one-niehtly ngpem-ance 

?SSVS£MS t^nSLr?%^Xr^ 

pure*Md^htfS AmeriSni *1 ^S!' “Autumn Nocturne.-- featuring the bi^t is yBUWng ittJuruMr^l only oneMptte iandeat apart:- 

S-SvA^VhT^e Beach' Calif^ as. bers rtc and*caifirms anditorV fiasby flamenco.dancing-of'Ted 8c On Ms tot Tisit to Canada, lingbula booj) you erer saw. She 
T nn^Beach Y He has-a seem- thoughts 'with no-delays. His un-‘ Maria Morca, and the robust sing- Brandt is on with swift tap-dancing rotates it around her middle while 

hirfy artless teefai^e^i ^. ^iTbintTl^X^ming in." : ing oof Art Johnson- balance the complete with^snnd ptoouettes, silking tor Ihtest recording hope, 

being deadpan ttonfcS, he To rap his upstaging, Dunnlngerc bill with classy flair..- Carlton; modernized soft^oe routoe to a "The HhXa Hoop Song./ • 
laughs heartibTinfectioualy at his ; has lour patrons thank of four Hayes arch capably provides the terrific *^Hot <^naqr tn slow Othenwse, she employs- no 

numbers. He then writes the total ; notes for the show, skedded for: tempo. Tor np^o-date dance stunts. She just Smgs«mgs ^oos- 

S?JSh^nt praise on a .slate. Patrons verify the num- four frames; Duke. % styling, Brandt bad-nn audience m ; ing, am^g others, ;T^eBv«r ; 

Jbf • tSflevertoSw bers, -and cerifies the pre-writ ten; . - : vociferous applanae vdiencaught. £ body,” “Nel Bhi Dipinto IM Bln” 

thlt 4e Xle act^rmiarkaWy t3U3&ch is correct. With rards, ■ ’ ' ± ■! ^ttowere^ ^Hi-^tes, who 1in both English anditton), 

cleL^d^LnoloiTfhumS usedinthe mentalist process, he is ; . Cet* cesAtt, flMStM r ?*** ^thf hmmy-^er»witch itf the JaA,-«a «me t»fto fa- 

fo-^efae IT - ™ equiDy adroit- - .; Hoiton. Sept 24. - to a alow ta nj> for ~Tamj>tl iii»" milian. iike “Troedlc Bee." “Nisa 

Miss Babs.is a blonde looi “ aud^OTtad^Sta^Suhni’Srat- nocoS/Dr^dm “Hands.” -^th eutbusiattic audi- G^e -was a substitute for 

with a long-stemmed figure, and Eeno she rates heavy with ?lJi^* rjuB * e dub, no coiw or nun- : partidpatioii of banddapping. Marguerite Piazza, who eanceEed 

shows a remarkable voice, one pf busky and always-in-command, Tnvum - Consisting of a blonde, brunet aqd for a two-week opener at the 

those trick throats that emi han- Voice. Her belting shows she knows : redhead, the Hi-Iite* end their Waldorf-Astoria after Edith Kaf. 


S?wSh^nt praise bntbSSS '*n a -slate. Patrons verify the mum- four frames; Duke .. styling, Brandt had-an audience m ; ing, amongothers, "1 Hove Evor- 

Jof Wrt^i^^iyertoS^ bers, -and cerifies the pre-writteni; . —- : vociferous applanae vdiencaught. £ body,” “Nel Bhi Dipinto IM Blu” 

thlt 4e Xle act^rmiarkaWy tS^3&ch is cOrrgct.WIth rards, ■ ’ ' ± ■! ^ttowere^ ^Hi-Hites, who 1in both English andStaHanTTWfc. 

cleL^d^LnoloiTfhumS usedinthe mentalist process, he is ; . CreflCMitt, flMStM r ^thf hmmy-^er»witch itf the JaA,-«a awartosfa- 
fo?5«£e2^ 110 1055 01 v -equaDy adroif - .:; > Homdon, Sept 24. j to a dow tem^ fjw "taaptatiou” miliar*, like “Tweedle Bee,” ^iss 

Miss Babs.is a blonde Icwto ^^ented 1 ^^^ i5^^prS^YSu^ "HandsT T^th enthusiastic andi- G^s was a substitute for 

with a long-stemmed figure, and Eeno S b e rates heavy ^with SfJ?* 100 * 8 dub, no eoiw or nun-. partidpatioii of banddapping. Marguerite Piazza, who ranceEed 

shows a remarkable voice, one of busky and -always-in-command, Tnvum - Consisting of a blonde, brunet aqd for a two-week opener at the 

those trick throats that emi han- voice. Her belting shows she knows : redhead, the Hi-Iite* and their Waldorf-Astoria after Edith Piaf. 

die the scale from mezzo to high ber way around a.tune. Most affec-. Tiny L a tin Carmen. D’Oro, for- second set wtth a medley of songs who had the Starlight .Boot 
coloratmra with pose and melody, ^ a “Mississippi Melody" with: meriy a singer and dancer with the. set in Paris, another medley of booking, was Ininred in an auto 
She uses it for pops ana stand- Qib South titles such as *Ttobert ' Xavier Cugat pulls top ap- Negro spiritual*, a reuring ^Caro-: accident in Prance. The .Shore- 


aids, including an amusing version £ Lee.” . rfiause thrashing severmum- lina In the < Moriktng;” - donning ham's Bralove didn't argue with 

of “Sugar Time” in Swedish. Her Miss Scott shows good emoting' her,. 22-mimite-afint^at the Club strawhats and doing stick drill*, \n« Piazza .(he and heregent had 
duets with accompanist Ulrick and voice on “Vnlare” and a ea-l Crescendo^ . '-uivz,' i and a great fiiode 4n * f Darktown signed a contract),' but obtained 

have a homey and pleasant quality, lypso offering. H«r reception rates! Apparently gmired from the Strutters Ball.” Earl Parnes ha*' Miss Gibbs. 

Miss Bahs could be a top glataor a playback. ; same mold as AaeHane; ^e kings ' done the song arrangements. A1 Donahue and 12s orch play 

personality. She has the voice and Bracketing^^show are the Starlets sultry, sweet aMbdometimes swings With Jimmy O'Shaimtocy held for her and for dancing w^i full 

looks. But she would have to come : in. a double holdover from last: for the bleacherki. Howraer, the over as emcee; phis the Craig Haye brass reed end rhytlansections 
on with more flash, drop some nf. book. Ably backing tlm khow^ is shapely atyfist ls vbest when she Dangers, the ibedfco-tralned, Buf- that jkre pleasing to hear, 
the folksy material and emphasize, the BUI Clifford orch. Double; belts ’em. MusBMin runs through falorbom baritone Is excellent in Following Miss Gibb* into' the 
her own part of the act so it is less' frame *nds Oct S. . Don?- ? *Tet Me Sing Away Your Blues,”; his 'Witchcraft* -and “Old Black Blue Boom will he Vaughn Mon- 

thc cozy twosome it now is. Neu.- : ——-— \ "Come Closer to Me,**- "Bock and ; Magic” to the gyrations of the per- roe,' " the Eimlnez-Yargas Ballet 

mann does a clever novelty^ color,: w _— : ®dlhe,” /Tjeave. It to Hove,” manent line, plus his solo effects - Espanol, lfh> And Nelson Eddy 

to spell Miss Babs, and this con-j r * uner „ Ay, Ay” then encores With "in J and fine voicecontrbl un bouncy;) with Gale Sherwood, in. thatorder. 

tribution should be the hmit of his 
foreground activity. The act ran; 


Fainter Boue^Chl 

Chicago, Sepk 25;- 


1 Ay, Ay” then encores With 


land flne voice oontrbl an bouncy | with Gale Sherwood, in that order. 


tribution should be the Hmit of Chicago, Sepk 25;- ; oflier Words”ana ^Ju^t One "Why Sould I Care” and "My; Carp, 

foreground activity. The act ran; Jose Greco S* Co^, 118)j Bgt; Those Things.'** ■ Funny Valentine.” • . ; . '. ' ■ ' - 

go one o£ two ways for American ' Arden Orch (Id); $2 rarer, $2.50 The latter was never done before ! ' Gto holdover*and introduction of; Slale 3tr—, J Hm Jk* 

appearances. At present it is ideal, Saturdays. :’a* Miss ITOijfdoes it To a torrid' new acts, A1 Siegel has started a; aMeles. Sept 23. 

for less sophisticated spots. If Miss ’ —-- I tempo she 3in»m»p« thp bottom of; needed hypo in fhhrri^. plus his; { 1 +n* Sdvha Duke Hazlett. 

Babs, currently under"contract to j D se Greco’s fburthh Empire' her ankle-length sheath dress for, current plans to punch nut J *he; -Vmi /■’uminorii coeer 

Dot ftecords, were given more Boom invasion reaffirms his hold: better movement then sings and' back waH of the Barday ahd eUmtH -* PTnm y irumt na, 
glamor and eame*t>n bigger, *he on the -cabaret eulturists. Finer 1 danceslofhelLatinbeat.Themove- naled a bar, this to Increase iii; *k« 

could be a top headline act any- points of flamenco dance may: ment is there, wdy the hula hoop spot’s ability in. handle 450 toer- ^ 111 
Where. elude the average tabler* but hoti 3s anisang. It’s A great number to; dancer* instead of the preseat lSOJ 


Freddv Martin onens the ihow ^ flavor and color stomped out^cLuit on, as hhe left both the front j ~ McStav. ^wh°se words may 

withTfliifSm-mimll Ger-Srin ^ castanets *dack and aet n£t; iid bSi row, pan tin*. The net «s! -; . 

medley/sboi isiniortv?o ^eete5, ; Sj^Tiith 0 ior toe •* »ell « the „■ K y, . f ftS^etnkkSS^fitL Ao^le- 

wbb Goy l^mbarao trti^er ; »££*^ e *** hw » ’ 2^“. ) SgJS&St-SSSS&Z 

— -— nifty reaction. _^iries the balance.ef the 45-minute! Mori Sahl. Dodo Greene, Marx-- tV deneea hUerr doing aolid 

Act is well-paced Jpr the Jto- ihowin its nsualiine manner. Ortiz FnoQ Trio; $1 cower, $2.50'berer-f totosik 

El Morotco.Menlreal . mmode route aeigj Mawrij co^lJelmrierif leambi^ j h^es* for the next lour so six 

«. SKaSSSS Sis5S?®£l|i aas 

£sWS'„nt.'."S, s; S:f?,‘-.!.!;”aa-SK: ffifrSSirff.I 

Ann Summers; $1.50 cover. £ danS^fi^t ontoiwes^oroi Jd^D’OrolsatthisspotthrTO^-pum^t^ thdr xapt atte^on: ^isoned With t^ffs irom life 
Nothin* is Iresbdy 1 choiragri^ed ***? ***** 


Mister SeMy 1 *, CM Jfrom being heard. With douhle- 

rfiirsM :-23 Stalk, a few jabs and a barrel of 
Morf the ramedun should keep 

MortSahJ, Dodo Greeny Marx-i.^^ /HMMn.iittmr doine solid 


with Guy Lrombardo taking over 
Oct. 8. - -Potoe. ' 

El Morocco, Momtrcasl | 

Montreal, Sept. 27. • 


Nothing .does biz 3n a auterjrnttcb iaire^/. ^S^Sf SZJZ £f 

« El Moroccoa^anomlc taft; mites saatbe wniinrSmA . &aa'n pungency end' fS 

described as a talker. And Jack horse-tra m in g numOCT is rttamea Skins ■ the depth of outfront ken. ? hrnn^it orMtutt -rebirn* With his 

Carter, currently headlining for 10: ln*mer£d^r ! _ Sahl’s third reprise at this pop-! 4 >ff_^£ci§^troing of Hollywood 

st,t 3^4S.« ta -gug-jjg feS mM S*BJSa£rt«;^s‘ 1 *iJXJS 


cpyciu ai u j - jji <umu»i m. unwie UUL __Ji 1 

few have forgotten this hep per- 1 
former. It’s a socko offering and 

boniface Peter van der Nora m 38 tot-rate. Pit ■ 

should set up new house records. ' 

On night caught, 'Carter had the Amato’s Supper Oab ' 
patrons ^orai his tot -song satire Portland, Gre^ Sept 23. ; 

<< CimWi'A T iwWkfa (V et Ai tA iwni tni„ w . -m «- w 


a iiainenuo suigerauu aum «iwi» [ H _ _»_ «- .-*% 

instrumentalists, including Hogerf 


Kansas City, Sept 26. 
Monique Van Vooren, lurry 
Green Orch -(B).; $1<$1.50 raner. i 


as^evi®. At the opener m) ± he) vith unerring style and sound of 
pomted to^thc yem g aames Wjuat sin^tra, with a little Dean Martin 
banner ed the ^herm Adams xesig-, thrown in for eood measure. The 


On ni^it caught Carter had the Amato’s Supper Omb ^mtoid^Toi^y 

patrons from his first song satire Portland Gre., Sept 23. ; ■eirien, andl t Js for him out of office?* Qn a n other ' Gumina—whose technique and 

^Simple life” rigblrtoragh a fast Ella Mae Morse, Hot ry Gilium ® *** ..^gi ^S?«^K»«deraWe--^pund 

series of dialect stories, -ringside Orch (4) The Dndltones X2)' no ■ a 2 H fi iortni «5 t ™* ” *■ Burrows to rewrite Bie French’ -gectlve show Bon. 

patter and impresh bit* imtfi^final^ mhtimwn or coveT ^ short run and Afrincte. jpo« jovenunent” And so on. over a! ” M ^ • 

begoff. Carter 4s one of the few- ^ ; to«mnparattwiltsa lot in Monique topical-range tot gamuts from tv? v IJ4iU w. wg 

comics with material that is adjust- -r iV x. ac ^ oori „ yan LToorea.jwwpg her first «nd bis new film to Itos and; *' 0 

able to the room andmty whm^ ^ the Chevy Impala. The subtleties! Hos A n g ele*, to t24. 

is playing. His local references w ; basing i*r Lurir figure in a ^chlc and -esoterics tot Barit his Joan Slaokmt^ JoeFeBx, Roger 

are drop^d in neatly and seldom gS^-SESS IfSSS * "vZJE at to same toe cement* Mchokr 2dripfc pdnbrutm. 

forced, giving him both a topical *3XT* her to of songs' In deePrtoMtot Sn with to cerebrals, and fin*} - 

and personal touch that appeals P»w* every bfi as- invest him with one of the rirai( J Marshall Edson and Mkhael 

strongly. Enthusiasm to plSe sznz g eate tab ^ tQOe 30113 ^ conthieiital a* to jads lead to': f 8 * Identities an to ito ro ehcint. Garth have a proclivity for giving 
keeps tempo at'top level: even the ttiPm.. -k—v * _ 1 customers to believe and polftos Salri is bfii&g wttboait being bffter ymrng tafest a chance an their 


keeps tempo at'top level: even the '^Tia w»i a 5f#w^- ** v.-v customers to believe and poIitos Sahl is bfiing wttbout being bttter raung tafent a chance an their 

injection S. material ®n the^infflgo A0 minutes as if it wera naught —he seems to understand he ffiS^r Hffls iBteiy, To little 

side get, by Decease™ Ms smJEj^ Ihe ^ oom - was *te««ly ,ppre?ia- p.idtonuke ’em laugh as weU gA.m^a af. to he CTmmended. 

delivery. ' IS^aw J SSL 2J5222l to, tough scarcely robust in as think. = Not aimm however is to talent 

Preeeediug Carter Is the dancing ^a-oTCS h rSsS™T«Sd^S' *EP lnise - . Se P ia ar “ sh ? 0 ?£* s "j? ne *5 * StJ^^TPrepundtar b benrde al. 

of the Canada group whose t£S sLnmedout s^WntjSdataS VOa. Van Voorcn a, cer- ^ge r-anag? ^ Jgt ^jrt .o^.piles . and- in the naae of Jyn Blnrtman. 

brief iffle^es draw salvos, ards, and her platter staffiorsolid tody ties continental^ to is also; 

SSttSS^?jSrW®s^^jSsjS^’S£ja j< S33rt!i-SSS; : '^Sy2S^5Ss‘fi?5S^^^5?S 

IS£€Si di ^ : 

sdL!LS^f^ fc “* 2s j ^ "* *»«•«- »! : nM2tr - "<“ , - 1 * ssssfssaBSrsas^'aasE 

fhl?E and a of P Ia y s a good show background and' Much 3s made of her zefle in^ablasweie indiffeneat. and ton? Lancaster zmdjSt completed a 

iSntrv " V TTn S C K corabaU » , Sor " | ets the customer* ra their feet for ; **Gigir whit* Is ranting np here' noxne, when to.tmn ataetched to! xoleS^Great EMytonMut^ng” 
with 0 ' » F c?? e ^ as a wa y dancing • seshes. The Bnaftones ; shortly, and to naturally leads off j 30 minutes, aw a F^b Trio? ^t Collrato, Ishodked^fertwo 

hand^ompfv ?m.lf 0 H attractlVe md ?? eI i contm up°f «ri«tjmmient. in! with -The They Liiveated xapitifr backstop- Show 1 * in toj weeks *Sk®pti®nsr-Joe Mix amd 

pwS 11 i u the lounge. Prof. Backwards^opens' Champagne,” while waiters pour three frames, with June -Christy 1 -Roger Nichdlsback up nicely on 

Amcee Wallv Asnell keeos show Ont. 3. ci,« .i..' w^.t_Gi io m* -- __ V. 


Emcee.Wally Aspell keeps show! Oct. 3. 

.i*< 1“ .via' e*c, 


.vdds -1 rbi 


<f& 6t m Minfth’ihtiH 0 w&ma i vttf stHm-mU 



61 


Wednesday, Oetober 1, 1953 


p mm 


NI61T CLUB REVIEWS 


ChM Pir ee. Chi 

Chicago, Sept 15. 
Nat Cola (4), Henny Youngman, 
Chez Adorable* (6>, Geotgs Cook 
Orch (12); $4 minimum,^ fUS' 
cover at dinner show only. 


Whatever the ledger shows when 
the current layout departs, the 
Chez bohif aces won’t have to dodge 
any brickbats. This one is clicko 
showcasing. If Nat Cole isn’t quite 
the draw of previous playdates at 
the Chi flagship, chalk it up to the 
general diminuendo of the big 
cafes, for the stylistic warbler is 
as smooth, generous and showmafl- 
ly as ever. 

Because of all the values he 
brings to a lyric, the Cole chemis¬ 
try is a unique and very moving 
nitery experience. Grade him A- 
plus on charm and poise, but in¬ 
evitably the act predicates on a 
tasteful catalog sagely stacked, and 
almost invariably singer and song 
enhance each other. Star is /a 
down-to-business labor-of-love per¬ 
former, doing only what comes 
naturally for 20 or so tunes in¬ 
cluding lotsa closely identified 
items such as “Mona Lisa,” “Too 
Young,” “I Am in Love” for dandy 
reaction all the way. Singer’s sav¬ 
vy trio supplements George Cook’s 
house band, which backs adequate¬ 
ly in spots. 

Henny Youngman’s don’t-dis- 
turb-a-good-thing philosophy is 
still paying off for plenty .of rises 
out front. Comic’s rapid one-liner 
delivery bubbles with vintage gags, 
but the Youngman flair as he leap¬ 
frogs ’em with throwaway lyrics and 
whimsical fiddling effectively over¬ 
comes any auditor resistance. 

Chez Adorable* (6) are slotted 
twice for good orb appeal. McGuire 
Sisters and Dave Barry move in 
Oct. 12. P*t- 

Hotel Roosevelt, N. O. 

New Orleans, Sept. 26. 

Jack Durant, Shepherd Sister* 
(3), Bobby BUmque, Leon Xelner 
Orch (12); $2.50 minimum. 

Jack Durant turns in the same 
click brand of comedy no matter 
what his plica on the bill. This 
time*he heads the show in this 
swank nocturnal rendezvous. This 
is the best place for him since 
even the best of them find it dif¬ 
ficult to follow him. From the 
moment he flipflops to land with a 
thud on his back, his stuff is just 
as sudden and reverberating. 

Durant has played this spot be¬ 
fore and knows how to slant his 
routine for its clientele. He sets 
up a continuous obligato of belly 
laughs. Durant is one of the wiser 
Comics in that he freshens his ma¬ 
terial for each outing here and it 
pays off in solid returns. 

Comic sings a little, sometimes 
mimicking other personalities, sat¬ 
irizes such people as Clark Gable. 
Primarily, he is a storyteller with 
a glib line of jokes that get a* good 
laugh-per-minute rating. He stayed 
on for over half an hour opening 
night and tableholders stayed with 
him all the way. 

Teeing off acts are"the Shepherd 
Sisters, three young blonde lookers 
who turn in a solid harmony per¬ 
formance. Gals blend voices nicely 
on ballads set to rock ’n’ roll beats 
and' other tunes including 
“Dream,”. “By The Light Of The 
Silvery Moon,” “Alone,” “Heart 
And Soul” and “Lullaby Of Broad¬ 
way.” 

Bobby Blanque, band vocalist? is 
also featured in the show. He’s got 
a capable delivery/ voice registers 
nicely and projection is good. Nets 
nice hand. 

Leon. Kelner and- his crew play 
it rhythmic and sweet and keep 
floor * crowded during the dance 
sessions. Their contribution to 
show, “Jazz Me Blues,” won them 
share of evening’s palm pounding. 

Liuz. 


Black Orchid, Chi 

Chicago, Sept. 26. 
Jonathan Winters, Randy Sparks, 
Joe Pamello Trio; $1.50 cover. 


Jonathan Winters’ debut here 
last February seems to have been 
a pulse-feeler. He’s improvising 
kliis stand and has given his stuff 
more bite, with one result that 
comic’s onstage longer, his teeoff 
(26) paced to 40 minutes.- Turn 
could be tightened (and probably- 
will), though looseness at outing 
caught didn’t noticeably flaw audi- 
*ence rapport. House was with him 
all the way for solid reaction. 

Uniform yocking went for his 
staples^—the pointer dog, the ama¬ 
teur show and old prison pic take¬ 
offs, and the wagon train- party. 
Laughs obtain as much for Win¬ 
ters’ vocal effects and puss mobility 
as for the penetrating verbiage, 
and it’s the sound-duplicating feats, 
In fact, that effectively rescue him i 
when he rambles himself into a'| 
corner. Impromptu stuff includes 
item-cUffibg from a n 


la tha mod* for Intimtrr satirists. 
It’s something copalc toulddaYtlop 
for hefty payoff. 

: Randy . Sparks Ik a young folk- 
singer with okay piping and quitar- 
ing, hut in need of some hallmark¬ 
ing to set him apart from the field. 
His" boyishness is an asset, and 
tablets generally glommed a cata¬ 
log that included the Belafonte- 
identified “Man Piaba.” Singer is 
advised not to stray, however. His 
one quasi-commercial item sent the 
customers back to their chops. 

Joe Pamello trio serves up fine 
entr'acte sets. Phil Foster starts 
Oct. 10. Pit. 


Birdland, N. Y. 

Stan Kenton Orch (18), Harry 
Edison Quintet; $2.50 minimum . 

Stan Kenton blew into Birdland 
week before last for a two-week 
stay that’s sure to keep the room 
jammed. Although his big band 
(10 brass, five reed, bass, drums 
and maestro’s piano) are bunched 
up on the postage-stamp podium, 
there’s still enough room for it to 
whip up a musical storm that turns 
the kiddies who dig Kenton into a 
happy lot. 

Kenton, one of the foremost of 
progressive jazz purveyors in the 
big band idiom seeips to have 
moved “in” since his last gig here. 
It’s not that Kenton has stopped 
experimenting, it’s just that he 
seems to be working out a musical 
pattern -with a broader appeal. 

Opening night set • Was marred 
somewhat by the fact that the band 
was going over on two simultane¬ 
ous remotes (NBC and Mutual). 
The intros went ,to the dialers and 
not the tablers and some of the 
mikes were geared for the airwaves 
instead of the room. Despite this 
“real drag,” as Kenton put it, the 
crew came across with an exciting 
musical drive. 

Kenton played a. large part in 
the proceedings by taking over the 
keyboard for some solid licks. His 
work at the upright was a smoothly 
polished affair that keyed the rest 
of the troupe. For the most part 
it’s a youthful crew sparked by a 
solid brass team. 

Things quiet down a bit when 
the band takes a break to make 
room for the Harry Edison Quinte't. 
It’s a swinging combo that fits 
easily into the Birdland groove^ 
Gros. 


Bradford Roof, Boston 

Boston, Sept.'24. 
Rudy Vallee, Sammy . Eisen Orch 
(6); $2.50 minimum. 


In a nostalgic turn, updated with 
fresh bits and slick patter, Rudy 
Vallee opens the refurbished Brad¬ 
ford Roof right across the street 
from the Metropolitan Theatre 
Where many years back he was al¬ 
most hit with a grapefruit while 
rendering “Give Me Something To 
Remember You By.” He nods 
back at nostalgia in the number to 
big opening night aud of partyites. 

Format of room has changed 
here with one name to be* featured 
as entire show and Valle figures to 
be the blockbuster booking in a 
prodigal’s .return to the Yankee- 
land room_ he has played consis¬ 
tently over the years. He gives 
convincing demonstration by filling 
the Bradford’s big roof garden to 
near capacity. Opening night his 
more than 75-minute repertoire 
won big salvos from femme-loaded 
aud and he came through with ap¬ 
peal in delivery of well-composed 
act that combos jokes, songs and 
current events in the right propor¬ 
tion, with accent on comedy. 

Vallee, working to a noisy aud 
in opener, quickly asserts stage 
authority ana repartee shots with 
ringsiders adds zest. Opening with 
“Lydia,” he segues to “As Time 
Goes By” straight and With inter¬ 
polations and does a dramatic 
“Casey at the Bat” to music. He 
works in sharp. one-liners. His 
satire is on the ribald side, but in 
perfect tune for the aud whether 
it be about aging processes or 
femme perversities or his croon¬ 
ing days. Switching, he does new 
“Talk to Me,” which he co-auth¬ 
ored, with the ever familiar Vallee 
pipes perking in good style/ He 
makes a production number out of 
“There’s Nothing Like a Dame,” 
wearing sailor hat, and Sammy, 
Eisen’s Orch dons the gob tops. 

High spot of Vallee’s songalog is 
rendering of “Life Is Just a Bowl 
of Cherries” as himself, then as 
Ray Bolger, Eugene Howard and 
Willie Howard. Femmes of the 
over-30 group break into spon¬ 
taneous applause when he gives 
with “Miss You” -and “A little 
Kiss Each Morning.” 

Sammy Eisen and his orch cut 
the .show and smooth dance sets. 
A1 Taxier is boniface at the re¬ 
furbished room* which is all in 
pristine white, and with the drapes 
Off the windows affords a neon sky 
view of Boston environs. This 
show holds through Oct. 7. Betty 


fm Caalift litfalt 

Buffalo, Sept. 26. I 

91 Curtain Going Up? mth The 
Vagabonds, Mel Leonard, Lenny 
Page, Moa Balsom Orch (9); $1.50 
minimum, 50c cover. ! 

Harry Altman is opening the 
local night club season by parlay¬ 
ing more than a decade of nitery 
operational savvy and a new house 
production gambit against uncer¬ 
tain biz condition^ especially in 
the afterdark show- spots. After 
shuttering the Casino last April 
with heated charge* regarding 
oveipriced feature acts and public 
indifference, he has bought out his 
former partner Harry Wallens and 
is going it alone this season with a 
valiant try at awakening the area 
public to the value and desirability 
of live stage entertainment. 

New policy of the house is based 
on proclaimed slogan of giving the 
public the utmost for its dollar. 
In addition to regular service in 
the main auditorium, a new “Ari-. 
zona Chuck Wagon” food bar has 
been installed at the front of the 
building, cased in glass, visible 
from the street and staffed by 
white-uniformed chefs. Here a full 
self-service dinner is available 
with chicken, prime ribs and all 
the fixings and an “eat as much 
as you want” slogan for $2.35. 
Immediately adjoining is a new 
“satellite” dining room where the 
Chuck Wagon dinner may be con¬ 
sumed without service charges and 
without any cover or minimum. 
This is apart from the show area 
and Intended for-diners only. If 
preferred, the Chuck Wagon fare 
may be taken into the main audi¬ 
torium where service is available, 
together with a minimum and en¬ 
tertainment charge. This is an in¬ 
novation hereabouts for this type 
of nitery and brings the tab down 
to any desired eating and/or 
entertainment level. 

Opening show puts strong em¬ 
phasis on house production idea. 
Altman has brought in a company 
Of 35 under the producing and 
staging hand of David Bines, who 
handled special Palace (N.Y.) pro¬ 
ductions several seasons ago and 
more recently has .been in charge 
of entertainment at Schroon Lake 
Manor. This show -features five 
production scenes marked by some 
outstanding precision work by the 
entire ensemble who obviously are 
conditioned to working as a unit 
Costumes and voices are above 
average and the choreography 
moves off in fast and striking pat¬ 
terns. Myron Roman (also ex- 
Palace) has been imported as guest 
conductor and does a sharp job in 
synchronizing the house orch with 
the show. 

For the opening, the Vagabbnds 
are underscored and hit a new 
laugh high in next-to-closing. Their 
zany instrumentation and clowning 


Kean &.Lew Parker open r Oet 8 
Wtffof twtTVeeks. y ’ 


arc in the best Vein of this sort of 
offering and as usual they-work it 
up-to rousing returns. Comedy Is 
strictly horseplay and pratfall, but 
the traditionalkick in the pants 
never got heavier returns than 
with these dedicated careerists to 
the harum-scarum, wacky metier. 

Mel Leonard, making a first 
nitery appearance following a suc¬ 
cessful stint as banquet enter¬ 
tainer, has some quiet, new gags 
and stories which are surprisingly 
effective in this milieu, Ed Dumont 
and Mary Gavin are standout in the 
vocal department, the Gavin girl 
being a cute replicatfdf the Widow 
Toda with voice, as she demon¬ 
strates in her well projected bit 
of “Show Me” from “Fair Lady.” 

Lenny Page, perennial emcee of 
the Casino, this year has taken 
over the executive managership 
and is acting as general major- 
domo of the enterprise. Altman 
plans to follow this one with an en¬ 
tirely new production to be called 
“Let’s Follow the Girls,” featuring 
Domenico ..(“Volare”) Modugno. 
Show biz entrepreneurs will be 
watching closely-to see if and how 
the. Casino’s new policy pays off 
at this crossroads for the nitery 
aficionados north and south of the 
border. Burt. 


365 Club, Sam Fruelseo 

San Francisco, Sept. 25. 
Mel Torme, Lili St. Cyr, Moro- 
Landis Dancers- (10) with Bill 
Carey, Bill Weir Orch (8); $1-$1.50 
cover. 


Mel Torme, though somewhat 
handicapped by band's draggy 
tempo, is a big click paired with 
Lili St. Cyr in swift-paced 50-min¬ 
ute show. 

Torme comes on strongly with 
“Nel Blu Dipinto di BIu,” following 
his intro, knocks out a fine “Wrong 
Time, Wrong Place” (to bass ac¬ 
companiment), a little “Shadrach,” 
kids “Autumn Leaves” for a couple 
of minutes and then sings it 
straight and beautifully. He tops 
himself with “Guys and Dolls,” 
sits down to a stage piano and 
plays and sings “Back in Your Own 
Backyard” and “Bye Bye Black¬ 
bird” and winds up 25-minute stint 
by doing a drum solo on “Lover.” 

Torme has an excellent voice. 
Wonderful diction—no mushmouth, 
he — and lots of empathy with 
crowd, which, liked him immensely. 

Miss St. Cyr, held over until 
Wednesday (1), does her own spe¬ 
cial “Night in Tangjers,” a terrific 
business-builder even though it 
gets little applause. 

Moro-LandiS Dancers hoof nicely 
in opening medley of New York 
songs and close show with a- stand¬ 
ard collegiate football number. Bill 
Carey’s a pleasant singing emcee. 
Bill Weir orch isn’t up to snuff. 

Stef. 



CORINNE CALVET 

Songs 

25 Mins. 

Le Cupidon, N. Y. 

'Corinne Calvet, the Gallic ac¬ 
tress imported by Paramount, is 
now essaying a tour of the nitery 
circuits. Her path has been made 
&'bit. easier not only by the near 
perpetual vogue for French chan- 
teuses who happen to be pretty 
and look sexy, but by the current 
trend to singing thesps who need 
no great singing voice to get bf: 
For example.“My Fair Lady” and 
“Gigi” are loaded with singers who 
do not sing. Marlene Dietrich has 
been getting by with an amelodic 
set of pipes for years. There are 
others too. 

While Miss Cjdvet’s voice is not 
keenly developed, her personality 
is. She’s bright and cheerful and 
has a vivid personality which 
makes her exclusions around the 
ringside a pleasurable event for 
the table occupants. 

Another plus is her going along 
with familiar French tunes which 
seem to supply the melody by 
themselves. These familiars in¬ 
clude “La Seine,” “Under Paris 
Skies,” “Autumn Leaves” and a 
few that aren’t familiar but listen- 
able. Her excursions into special 
material (en Anglais) do not come 
off as well. 

Sartorially, MUe. Calvet clicks 
handsomely. She makes her en¬ 
trance in- a slinky sequined tight- 
fitted trouser outfit, and thence 
goes into a kiosk-like construction, 
indigenous to the Paris scene, 
where she transforms into a taste¬ 
ful gown. 

Miss Calvet Is still on the once- 
around count. By the time she 
makes the full circle of cafes, she 
should iron out the kinks in her 
turn which should make the sub- 

,, sequent bookings easier. 

-** a®*.; 


tively in this room presided-over 
by Robert who supervises all the 
details from back to front with 
style and class. Jose. 


STEREOS (4) 

Songs * 

27 Mins. 1 

Gatineau, Ottawa 
Recent entry into the chant-four¬ 
some slot, the Stereos have a slick¬ 
ness that points to clicko training 
and plenty work on sound routines. 
Group wisely limits stint to three 
or four items with fine arrange¬ 
ments, such as “76 Trombones,” 
“You Are My Destiny,” “Saints 
Go Marching In” and a spiritual 
“Joshua.” Showing need of fixing 
are the gab bits, and the general 
staging where there is too much 
car boning of billtopping chant 
groups, particularly in visual slot 
Development of showmanship 
savvy should proceed with speed 
since the boys exhibit a tendency, 
possibly without realising it, to 
condescension in working to the 
tables. Trimming and tightening 
would make this a socko item for 
all sight and sound media. 

Gorm. 


RAFAEL RUIZ & DANCERS (6) 
Dances ' 

24 Mins. 

Gatineau, Ottawa ' 

Rafael Ruiz is a young (19) man 
with Click terp ability showing 
definite evidence of training and 
routining in ballet and Latin slots. 
Boy’s solos are spiked heavily with 
both terp types, ballet and heel¬ 
hammering sharing use fairly 
equally. But while Ruiz is -an able 
dancer, the five femmes he sur¬ 
rounds himself with are lacking in 
ability, routining and coordination 
and costuming is only adequate. 

Should Ruiz replace them with 
even two or three capable of 
enough Latin steps to • back his 
items, f&e stint could ride higher. 
Now, it’s flabby. Gorm. 


QieeM Elizabeth, Mamt’l 

Montreal, Sept. 24. 

Jaya P. Morgan with Morgan 
Bros. (4), Don Warner Orch (11), 
Louis Pannet Trio; $2.50-$3 cover. 

Jtye P- Morgan, is the first 
blonde belter to play the elegant 
Salle Bonaventure of the Hilton- 
operated Queen Elizabeth Hotel 
and she is a refreshing and aggres¬ 
sive change. Supported by her 
four brothers who play, sing and 
dince with her. Miss Morgan offers 
one of the most varied programs 
seen around this part of the circuit 
for quite a while. Diversity is 
backed with okay talent* and a 
desire to please, but the very 
nature of the potpourri, although 
bound to satisfy all tastes, takes 
some of the edge off overall effec¬ 
tiveness. 

On night caught, group seemed 
to be trying everything "in their 
book, moving from a click arrange¬ 
ment of **My Baby Just Cares For 
Me” in almost ballad rhythm to a 
rousing costume-change item, 
“Yes, Indeed.” Except for a 
breather when the freres take over 
to do a group of spirituals and give . 
Miss Morgan a chance to switch 
gowns, femme is very much in . 
evidence at all times. They re¬ 
frain from unnecessary gabbing 
during stint and only bring in a 
brief mention of their platter hits 
when they intro “Stardust,” their 
new Victor waxing. 

Act has solid potential for all 
visual mediums; they have youth 
and enthusiasm on their side hut 
more care in coordinating their act 
to fit the medium or room they 
are working in would boost appeal. 

The new orch under Don Warner 
makes for pleasant listening and 
hoofing but seems rather lethargic 
after the Denny Vaughan band. 
Vaughan is slated for a return to 
the Salle Bonaventure in Novem¬ 
ber. Miss Morgan &> Co. arc in 
until Oct. 4 with Nelson Eddy to 
follow Oct. 6 and French chirper 
Jacqueline Francois set for Oct. 27. 

Newt. 


Jefferson, St. Louis 

St. Louis, Sept. 23. 
Gene Austin, Johnny O’Brien, 
Johnny Polzin Orch (7); $1.50-$2 


The Sheraton-Jefferson’s Boule¬ 
vard Room, minus floorshows for 
several years, made a happy choice 
of talent for its reentry into the 
entertainment department — vet¬ 
eran crooner Gene Austin. Austin’s 
pipes have hardly changed at all 
since he first wowed ’em back in 
“the good old days,” and he makea 
a nice, easygoing session of it up 
there on stage. 

Along with “My Blue Heaven” 
and some perennials penned by 
Austin himself, he takes a rapid- 
fire tour down yesteryear’s melody 
lane and coaxes the audience to 
sing along with him on the more 
familiar ditties. Austin is engaging 
in the story-telling department, 
too, and he makes good use of the 
informal patter between songs. 

Harmonicomic Johnny O'Brien, 
who opens the show, builds up the 
yocks all the way with a folksy, 
drawling roundup of anecdotes 
that get to the customers’ funny- 
bones and stay there. He's a whiz 
on that harmonica, too, arid wraps 
up things with a batch of musical 
fireworks. 

Johnny Polzin’s local crew, a 
smooth, -danceable outfit that cuts 
a good show, will be on the hand¬ 
stand probably throughout the 
season. Next floor show attraction: 
Denise Lor and Jack Durant, open¬ 
ing Oct. 3. Godd. 

Interlude, Hollywood 

Hollywood, Sept. 23. 

Earl Grant, Leo DeLyon, Morty 
Jacobs Trio; $1 cover, 2-drink min¬ 
imum. 


Leo DeLyon, a name that’s bound 
to draw snickers on the Strip, has 
taken over second spot to Earl 
Grant at the interlude and is mov¬ 
ing downstairs*!or. a show-a-night 
with Frances Faye at the Cres¬ 
cendo, besides. That he can whis¬ 
tle “Swanee River” and hum “Hu¬ 
moresque” at one and the same 
time is no mean talent, and, every¬ 
thing he does, it’s this bit of va¬ 
riety that scores biggest. 

As a comedian, DeLyon makes 
effective use of a voice'that com¬ 
ically ranges from falsetto to bass. 
His material is sometimes good, 
sometimes so-so, but his opening 
show was no fair test because the 
meager crowd—typical of a slow 
Tuesday night—would have done in. 
the best of comedic talents. In his 
25-minute Interlude turn, DeLyon 
tinkles a pleasant-sonnding piano 
in backing himself and receives in¬ 
termittent help from the fine 
Morty Jacobs Trio, with trio also 
doing well on its own. 

DeLyon is hooked for three-and- 
a-half weeks, with Grant and his 
smooth style remaining until Janu¬ 
ary. ’ *'* = Ron. 





6* 


o«m» rym 



Robert C. Rothafel presentation 
with Jennie Smith* Evelyn Faoe*\ 
Joke Lit SdUe Qoartety Rory Dan¬ 
cer* (It), Bob Boucher Orch; set* r 
Bntno Moine^costumes, Winmford 
Morton; choreography, Ray Frost * 
Kenny Springer ; “Damn Yankees" 
(WB) r reviewed fa Variety Sept , 
17* ’53. 


With, this show* the Roxy returns 
to the land of the living (enter¬ 
tainment, that isJ. House was re¬ 
linquished hy the Skouras interests 
and taken over by a syndicate 
headed by-Robert C. Rothafel, who 
•was managin g director nnder its 
previous ‘ownership. The theatre 
ripped out the CineMlracle instal¬ 
lation restored the house to its 
former capacity and its previous 
format* with the exception that it 
now has a regulation stage instead 
bf an ice rink. 

Rothafel faces a lot of problems 
with this Uncl-of policy. Inasmuch 
as it will be difficult to get head¬ 
liners, now accustomed to niferies, 
to do four shows daily* something 
different had to be evolved. Roth¬ 
afel is apparently aiming for an 
irttHmate- brand of entertainment 
which will showcase some pleasant 
talents and fresh faces. Production 
carried out by eight %oys and an 
equal number of girls aims for 
warm and colorful format with 
song and dance predominating, al¬ 
though it's evident that these acts 
will be alternated with occasional 
novelties. 

The opening show achieves a 
statement of its aims. Both the 
stage and the performers are com¬ 
parative strangers to each other, 
but it is evident that with familiar-, 
ity, the desired brand of enter¬ 
tainment will result. 

Topper on this display is Jennie 
Smith, who has disked for RCA 
Victor and now Colombia. Pleasant 
voiced and with a style easily as¬ 
similated, she shows an ease of 
delivery and a disarming manner 
which brings this huge house down 
to her proportions. In a batch of 
numbers including “Everybody 
Loves a Lover” and a set of stand¬ 
ards, Miss Smith wraps up the 
house easily. 

Also in the singing Yem, but 
with comedy overtones, Evelyn 
Page does a couple of delightful 
laments to some good surrounding 
production. The first, mourns the 
passing of solid dancing for chore¬ 
ography, and there are rimes when. 
sHe not only has a point but makes 
the proposition comedically clear.: 
Her solo opus, "100 Ways to Lose 
a Man,” puts her over excellently. 

The John La Salle Quartet 
serves a multiple function on this 
show. Aside from working the pro¬ 
duction, the three boys and a girl 
knock out some avante-garde rhy¬ 
thmics, more suitable for the small 
smoke-filled rooms than for a 
house that gets every shade of 
musical opinion. Rendition of 
“Night We Called It a Day” Is a 
rather showy piece with, compli¬ 
cated rhythms and overly ornate 
figurations, hard to follow and 
extremely wearing under these 
'Conditions. Reception to “Clemen¬ 
tine” to a production bit immedi¬ 
ately afterward should indicate 
their sticking to elementals. 

The varied house numbers pre¬ 
sente a variety of moods. Bulk are 
gay and there’s a bow to*a more 
modern bit of choreography in its 
deception of “Autumn Leaves.” 
Costuming by Winniford Morton 
shows imagination; the sets by 
Bruno Maine are similarly striking 
and the musical direction of Bob 
Boucher, back in his accustomed 
spot onstage, helps create a smooth 
show. The Ray Frost and Kenny 
Springer choreography also helps 
the cause. It will take a show or 
two to break in the crew, but 
eventually Rothafel should evolve 
a consistently winnfcg stageshow 
style. Jose. 


PHnee ef Wales, London 

London, Sept* 23. 
Jewel St Warriss,, The Kalin 
Twins (2), The Mudlarks (3), 
Florian Zdbach, Ron Parry, Jimmy 
Gay , The Dunjas (5), Alexander's 
Wonder Dog Revue, Granger's 
Puppets (2), Harold Collins Orch, 


Originally there were to have 
been three vocal acts at the top 
of this layout, but Michael Holli¬ 
day was taken ill on opening night 
and had to miss his West End 
debut. Jewel Sc Warriss, top-rank¬ 
ing local comedy act* currently 
riding high with their own com¬ 
mercial tv show, took over the 
headline spot at short notice. In 
the circumstances, it is under¬ 
standable that they did not have 
adequate time to ready some new 


material. But it strained audience 
loyrity to .find that the bollr of. 
thefr show was very sfmilar tee their 
pr e rfoia week's video act ott the 
Palladium bffi. Nevertheless, it 
evoked an adequate response and.] 
earned quite a few yoeks. 

The Kalin Twins, a fresh-look¬ 
ing pair of youngsters making 
their London ■ stage bow, again 
demonstrated the success which 
can be achieved by disk, stars in 
vaudeville. They are at their best 
when doing beat numbers like 
“Don't Care If I Die,” but also 
show up nicely with a softer rendi¬ 
tion of “Too Young.” An oldtime 
medley with modem arrangements 
makes a diverting contrast, but 
“Dream of Me,” which the twins 
have just recorded in Britain, is a 
sentimental ballad not entirely 
matching their talents. Naturally, 
they save their hit number, 
’'When,” as their closer, enabling 
them to bow off in fine style. 

The other vocal act is a British 
trio, the Mudlarks, who are aft 
their best in the rock ’n* Toll idiom. 
They’re a lively and vivacious 
group who have developed a fine 
and vigorous harmony style* Typi¬ 
cal items from their songahjg'are 
“Rode Around the dock” “The 
Book of Love” and “Don’t Gamble 
With Love,” while “I Didn’t Know 
the Gun Was Loaded” makes a 
contrasting specialty. ’ 

“A newcomer to the London scene 
is Florian Zabach (who is also 
doubling in Savoy cabaret) and he 
easily provides the best act on the 
bill. His expressive use of the] 
violin is clearly demonstrated in 
a range of numbers from .the 
classics to pop ^ballads. He has 
a warm and friendly personality 
which readily projects, although 
his patter is occasionally dated. 

Ron Parry is a comedian with a 
different gimmick—he’s aide to 
throw his voice in a way which 
allows him to do a sort of ventrilo- 
quial act without the aid of a 
dummy. By this technique he 
carries oik highly amusing two- 
way conversations. Jimmy., (Jay’s 
type of humor is more straight¬ 
forward, hut he scores with his 
sharp, penetrating material. The 
Dunjas, a quintet of Danish youths, 
are energetic if conventional 
acrobats; Alexander’s Wonder Dog 
Revue features * well-trained team 
of performing canines; and the 
Grangers have a typical lineup of 
performing puppets. Show, which 
is in for two weeks, is adequately 
backed by the Harold Collins-orch-. 

Myro, 


; 90 # turn e d Jomr chirp- 

ikg le w* •reft aapompanfaientr 
She BaS f*feat*hut fS «h he lMf 
jra* there * e moaetmaj te MU 
her .noertenr awT-KMMKiiKr «' 
As special attmetiom^to round 
out this first program and those 
that wilt follow, Co«utrix has 
signed George Beiefc’a “Ballet* 
Hoi” hiil*r u “BaUets 

HQtympia”>. Hfeteh, an American 
and disciple of Jerome Robbins, 
has attractiverestful company 
and both riaficjpg and choreo¬ 
graphy benefit % electric Amer¬ 
ican tempo, stitt a novelty here. 

Curt ■ 

• -• IU..— 

Apollo,!*. Y. 

Norma Miller Dancers (5)* Sad 
Sam & Pineapple, Royal Holidays 
(4), Oscar & Annette* Kodak* (4), 
M’oonglows (5), Ruth Brown, Paul 
Williams Orch (13>; "Ten Wanted 
Men" (Col). 


Olympia, Paris 

Paris, Sept. 30. 
The Platters (5), Marcel Amont, 
George Reich's “Ballets HOlym- 
pia," Lucette RailXat, Jean-Marie 
Proslier, Oliveras, Marie-Josee 
Neuville, Warren, Devine & Sparks; 
Suzanne Gabiiello; $4 top. 


Bruno Coquatrix has done more 
than his share to put vaudeville 
back on the map in France, Taking 
over the second-run boulevard pix 
house, Olympia, four years ago, he 
has made it the’ Palace of Piris 
and -nofr in addition manages the 
neighbor, Montparnasse house, the 
Bobino, Both are doing sellout biz. 

Present Olympia program opens 
the 1958-59 season and is helmed 
hy the Platters who scored sensa¬ 
tionally on same hoards last year. 
Established by their disks and 
previous engagement here as Paris 
favorites, the quintet register with 
equal strength on their return. 
During 45 minutes they exhibit 
most of the tricks in their hag, 
demonstrating cool bogie beat as 
opener; tenderly vocalizing “Only 
You” and “My Serenade”; swing¬ 
ing the ragtime “Darktown 
Strutters Ball” and doing an all- 
out Belting of “When the Saints 
Come Marching In” spiritual -as 
rousing finale. 

Individual and ensemble work of 
fivesome are topflight. Zola Tay¬ 
lor, contralto; Tony Williams and 
David Lynch, tenors; Paul Robi, 
baritone, and Herbert Reed, bass, 
do harmonizing .that brings cheers. 

Marcel Amotit, slight, 4uick- 
moving comic, is second headliner 
of bill. A droll clown, he opens 
with the cha-cha-cha and goes on 
to some neat parodies of bull¬ 
fighter at work and Spanish quitar 
player who forgets the lingo in the 
middle of a passionate serenade. 

There is Lucette Raillat* award¬ 
ed Grand Prix du Disque this year, 
with her pop songs; a fast and 
funny trio of tumblers* Warren, 
Devine Sc .Sparks; the acrobatic 
Oliveras and Suzanne Gabriello as 
sexy and likeable mistress of cere¬ 
monies. 

Monsieur J-M. P. does comic 
roundup of current events. Guitar- 


MELBOUMNE 
Tlvatt 
Merry Macs 
kSaxarme A Escorts 
Max & Cberie 
Arnley A Gloria. 
Tterry Scanlon 
MAS Davis 


Current semester at this Harlem 
house spotlights the rock V roll 
beat with a succession of quartets, 
duets and quintets leading up to 
solo headliner Ruth Brown for a 
zingy finish. IFs a slow and mo¬ 
notonous build to the closer, 
though, because preceding turns 
ail toy with the “big beat” in sim¬ 
ilar fashion and it comes out as 
one long deejay show without a 
commercial intrusion to break the 
pace. 

The singers come on In force 
after the* Norma Miller Dancers 
and Sad Sam Sc Pineapple 
have their turns. Miss Miller, 
working with four fast-stepping 
boys* creates plenty of zip with her 
terp movements but loses some of 
the momentum when she tackles a 
patter repertoire that’s too musty 
for laughs. When she sticks to the 
fancy stepping with her fellows, 
she’s in good shape to get any 
vaude layout off to a running start. 
Sad Sam Sc Pineapple follow with 
tiresome dialog^ that misses in 
every respect. 


BIRMINGHAM 
Hippodrome 
Dickie Henderson 
Freddie Mills 


TSsner 1 
Skylons 
2 Gees 

Marie De Vere’* 

BRADFORD 


The Paul W3 
the way for . 
that follows ' 
klebuct” feati 


n __ orch. opens 

[ ..musical deluge 
*a, breezy “Huc- 
maestro’s sax 


and lively newts' called “Upbeat 1 
Then come the lingers. 

First there’atle Royal Holidays, 
four , boys, who deliver “Zoom,” 
‘Tm Sorry” and “Summertime” 
without tod much originality or 
style. Oscar Sc Annette move in 
next with some hip 'dueting on 
“Let's Qet Together” and “Rockin’ 
Child.” Oscar’s solo on “Guilty of 
Loving You” doesn’t work out too 
welL Three boys and a femme, the 
Kodaks* take over the mikes with 
some juve-voiced workovers of 
"Little Boy and Girl*” “King In 
My Castle” and "On Gee.” Then, 
come the Moonglows, five young 
men, with “Ten. Commandments of 
Love,” “See Saw” and “When I’m 
With You.” The Baritone and 
tenor leads keep the femme teen¬ 
ers in the aud happy through the 
songalog. 

. It’s Miss Brown, though, who 
wraps up everything in pro fash¬ 
ion. Opening with a lively belter, 
“Just Too Much,” and segueing to 
a mood item, “Book Of Lies,” she 
packs her turn with such discHcks 
as “Mama,” “Why Me” and “Little 
Girl.” The aud here is familiar 
with her wax works and she wins 
’em over easily. ' Grot. 


Terry Dene 
Margo Sc June 
Jour Boys 
Barry Anthony 
Duve Gray 
Fey Jover 
Mazy KiMoB 
Netty St- Della 
BRIGHTON 
HIppodromo 
M Sc B Winters 
Dobie 2 
Don Fox 
Tracey Sis 
Mietin Juniors 
Alain Diagora 
Josephine Anno 
Rorioart 

EDINBURGH 
Empire 
Shirley Barney 
Lane 2 

Jones A Arnold 
Roxy A Glenda 
B A M Konyot 
Hi-Fi'* 

Allen A Alboo Sis 
BiUy O'Sullivan 

FINSBURY PARK 


Too Mach Biz 

— Continued from page 57 s 

centers. Many agents in that 
country aren’t trustworthy and wilTj 
frequently cancel acts at the last, 
minute* or bev unable to deliver 
talent alreadyiSbontracted for. 

To prevent ^agents from taking 
too large a commission slice or 
rebates. Ferry xJpiys^ the acts with 
two checks, otttpfor salary and the 
other the standsttd agency commis¬ 
sion. When acts are booked out of 
London, priees rise about $78 to 
cover air transportation. To re¬ 
coup part of the investment, fre¬ 
quently these acts, are sold to 
smaller clubs" which, have shows 
one. or two nights weekly. 0 This 
helps acts as well as other cafe 
owners. r 

While there has been some talk 
of joint buying ventures, nothing 
has been done.- Perry says that 
costs could be lowered and .shows 
improved with consecutive routes 
ol IQ or 12 weeks. 


MacRae’s CavOUcade 

Port Arthur* Tex., Sept 30. 

Gordon MacRae, the Chordettes, 
dancer Delia Weddington and 
comedian-m.e. Johnny Matson are 
booked to appear at tht CavOIL- 
cade here slated for Oct. 16 to 18. 

Tippy Sc Cobina.Thimp act* will 
round out the bill. 


me OF OCTOBER * 


NfWYOtK-CTTY 


MUSIC HALL’ % 
2 Martin* 

Cotnd»MH 


*. Fait* Ore. 

AUSTRALIA 


Marge Gtency 
Kuban Dancers 
John Broadway 
Sally Richardson 


Norman Yens 
Deidre Green 
SYDNEY 
Tivoli 
nolly Roll* 

Douglas A Priscilla 


Dargle S 
Billy Baxter 
Najaa 
Alcetty* 

D oro th y Costello 

SSTSU* 


ADKLAIDI 

Royal 

f Griswold 


Amur Berry er 
Mhdieck A Marlowe 
Wi nuetuu A Squaw 
Bayes A Faye 
Williams A Shand 
Barton A Stuchb’r'y 
Edit Julian 
Frank. Ward 


BRITAIN 


Nitwits 
Fraser's Gang. 
Danny Porches. 
Magyar Ballet 
Gold A Cordell 
Peter Dairy 


GLASGOW 
Empire 
Max Bygraves 
3 Orchid Dancers 
Devine A Barbara 
Fred LoveUe 
Falcon* 

Garland Girls 
3 Britton* 
daudine. 

LEEDS 
Empire 
Hal Monty . 

Cha Cha A Herm- 


Strong Bros. 
Alexia Tr. 
Jolly Jesters 
Dave Conway 


LIVERPOOL 
. Empire 
Dune Dora 
Dickie Dawson 
5 Quarters 
Van Vein Duo 
Frank 3 
Jack Stanford 
Reee A Marian 
NEWCASTLE 


Deep ltirer Boy* 
Manhattan Dancers 
Fran Dowie 
Sid' Plummer 
Annell A Break 
Don ArroL 
Anaona 
Pauloe 

SHEFFIELD 

Empire 

Earle A Vaughan 
Horier 1 
Dtday A € 0 . 

Alien Bros. A June 
Gilbert 

Victor Seaforth 
.A A B Black , 
Peggy Cavell 


Cabaret Bills 


new root cmr 


Ben Sale - 

Larry Starch 
Mae Barnes 
Bobo Lewis 
Jimmie Daniels 
Three Flame* 
Murray Grand ' 
Blue Ansel 
M. Davis A Spouse 
Dorothy Tendon.- 
Jo March. 

Nichols' A May 
Jimmy Lyon 3' 

Bart Howard 


Caroline A Belea 
CartHni String* • 
Chateau Madrid 
Helene Aimee -. 
Reyes A Fepita 
Ralph Font Ore 
Panchito Ore 
Candl Cortes 


Joe E. Lewis 
Toni Arden 
-Lois Ray 
Bob Warren. 
Downstairs - Room 


Jean Arnold 
Jane Connell' 

Ceil Cabot 
Jack Fletcher 
George Hall 
Gerry Mathews 
Stan Keen 

Ne. 1. .Fifth Avs. 
Gid Durston* 

Phil Leeds 
Bob Downey 
Harold FonVillo 
Joan Bishop 
Hotel Roosevelt 
Lenny Herman 
BUI Snyder 
Hotel Plan 
Lisa Kirk 
Ted Straeter Ore 
Mark Monte Ore 
Hotel Taft 
Vincent Lopes Ord 


Hotel Bt. Resit 
CortaUore -Moor* 
Marshall Grant 3 
Milt Shaw Ore 


Bbh -BaNeTa 
Red Vine's 

Be* Bine. - 
Ray Genu 
Smith Twins 
Sally Blythe 
GharleirVespla 
Sksuny WON 
Dick Berine 
Richard Cannon 
[Tan Lane Ore 
Cocoanut Grove 
Sam Levenson 
Alice Baba 
Freddie Martin Ora 
Crescendo 
Mary Kaye Trio 


H\ Ch* 


Leo- De Lyon \ 
Morty Jacob* Trie 

E sh Dree; 
Gen* Kyles 


Tommy Gumina 


Dorothy Shay 
Stinniy Fnn<« OTO 

Ye Little Club 
Joan. Blackman 
Joe Felix 
Roger Nichols 


LAKE TAHOi 


Cil-Neva 

Gordon McRae 
Sheila Stephens 
W. fisborne Ore. 
. Harr ah'* Club 

| Vic Demone 
Edie Adams 


Del Courtney Ore 
Nevada Ledge 
Page Cavanaugh 

Chuck-e-Luckx 
Wagon Wheel 
Champ Butler 
Satellites 
. Rossi A .Boyer 


LAS VEGAS 


Desert »nn 
Betty Grable 
Bob W illiam* 

Art Johnson 
Donn Arden Dner* 
Carlton Hayes Ore 
Dunes 

"Minsky’s Follies ’ 
of issr*- 
Novelites 

Tommy (Moe> Raft 
Chiquita A Johnson 
Fredonia* 

Chili Pepper 
Vera Vera 
Jack Hmiard 
Sharon Randall 
Barbara Esko 
Murray Brisco 
Vickie Den as 
Cee-Davidson Ore 
El Cortex 
Duhonnett Trio 
Don Baker 4 
Three Al's 
El Rancho Vega*- 
Eartha Kitt 
Myron Cohen 
Barry Ashton Dncra 
Dick .Rice Orch 
Flammge 
Tony Martin 
Wiere Bros. 

Don Kirk 
Flamingoettes . 
Jack Cathcart Or4 
Harry James 
Fremont Hotel 
Nlteeaps 
Mark Wayne 4 
Make Believes 


Marthn BrroUe 
Queti Claveio 
‘Jo Lombardi Ora 
B Harlow* Ore 
Le CupWeti 
Corinne Calvet 
Howard Beder 
Ish Ugardi Ore 
-Catun Ore 

International 
Alan Gale 
Kay Brown 
Arnold Dover 
Mac Pollack Ore 
D’AquHa Ore 
R* V P 

Kabelle Mercer 
Savoy Hilton 
Emile Petti Ore 
Two Guitars 
Olga Valdl 
Ivan Nepa „ 

Xenia Bran to 
K. Poliansky Ore 
w«ii» Usdanoff 
V i enne s e Lantern 
Luc A J. Foret 
Ernest Schoen 
Village Bora 
Belle Carroll 
Tex Fletcher 
Flash Mason 
Karen ThorseU 
Mickey O’Malley 
Lou Harold Ore 
Village .Vanguard 
Carmen McRae 
Irwin. Corey 
Norman Simmons 3 
Evans Bradshaw 3 
. Waldorf-Astoria 
Marguerite Plane 
Earn Coleman Ore 
Bela Bahai Ore 


CHICAGO 


BlacK Orchid 

Jonathon Winters 
Bandy Sparks 
Joe Parnello <9 


Phyllis Branch 
Spiros Skouraa 
Alexandra Langada 
Red Head A Lady 
Ed Small 
Lord Christo 
Blue Net* 
Modem. Jan Quart. 
Chris Connor 
Chei Fare# 

Nat Cole 
Henny Youngma* 
Geo. Cook Ore. 
Chex Adorables (Bt 
Cloister IBit 
Dick Haviland 

Meg Myfee __ 

Ramsey Lewis Trig 


Conrad Hllten 

Harrison A Kosal 
Nobertl 
Helga Neff 


Ore 


w»tni Kroel 
Charlie . Flak Ork 10 
Drak« 

Jane Morgan. 

Jimmy Blade 
Gate ef Ne 
Will Halt 
Marilyn Child. 

Lendew Hot.. 
Marian McParOa'd 3 
Mleter KeHya 
Mori. Sahl 
Dode Gr eene 
Marty BuMnatela 2 
Merc A Frige 
Palmer Houi 
Joee Greco 
Ben Arden Or* 


LOS ANGELES 


Avant Garde 

Abbey Lincoln 
Nino Tempo 
Lennle Bruce 


I Fafti Moor* 
•Ben Leasy 


Turk Murphy 
Ish KabibUe 
Flo Dreyer 
Carmen Le Farr 3 


Stubby Kaye 


Shecky Green* 
Blllywllliam*. 
Bay Sinatra Or* 
Sahara 
Martha Raya 
Lou Wills, Jr. 
Royal Guards 


Louie Basil Ore 
Lord* Prim*— 
Kaeley Smith 


Natalie . 

Sends 
Judy Garland 
Rings IV 
Texas Cope Girl* 
Antonio Morelli Or* 


Shirley Scot! 
Garr Nelson 
Showboat Girls 
Vic Arfese Ore 
Silver Slipper 


Sally Band 
Spazfcy Kaye 
Red Marshall 
Danny Jacob* 


Geo. Bedman Ore 


Lido De Paris 
"Cerit Magnififue* 

Hilly 


Winjfir Manem 
Treglc e n*' 

Red Buttons 


__Binger* 

Net Braadwynae 

Ore 


Tune Toppers 
Fred Mackenzie 
HerM* Fields 9 


MIAMI-MtAMl BEACH 


Americana 
Stan Ross Trio 
Lee Martin Ore 
Nina Remen 
• BM moral 
Charlie Farrell 
B£Qy Mitchell' 
Mickey Gentad 
Jose Curbelo Or* 
Clever Club 
Moorman A Pica* 
dUly Pipers 
Bonnie Davis 
Bob Novack Ore 
Bdeh Ree 
Jackie Heller 
Mai Malkin Ore 
Sonny Kendls -Or* 
Lai* Varona Ore 


Murray Schlamm 
Sacasas Ore 
Pupf Campo Ore 


Walah. 

A Tracy 

_ RodeU 

Tcmy Mataa 

Lucerne 

Havana Marts Gras 
Dloea CoeteUo 
Mile* Velarde 
Don- Cerino 
. Tonla Flore* 
rTony A FraneeQa 
Juan Romero 
David Tyler Or* 
The Grate 
Joe Mooney Quartet 
Johnny Smith 
Herbie- Brock Ore 
Phil Ruedy 3 


HAVANA 


Capri 

Grade Barrie 
Maribel Llorens 
Dick Lee 
Carmelite Lopez 
Miguel Herrero 
Somavilla Ore 
Calvet Ore 

Hilton 
Lbs Rbmeros 
Paul Lombard 
Est elite 
J. Moreno Ore 
Fajardo Ore 
National 

.Celeste . Mendoza 
Gina Romand 
Manolo Torrcnte 
Ana y Julio 
Monica Casfell 
Manteca 
Dancing Waters 
W Reyes Ore 
Rlvler* 

'Gatique" Rev. 


Ramon Veloz 
Gina Martin 
Raul do.Mesa 
Maria Magdalena 
Rodrigues Singers 
Felix Guerrero Ore. 
Casino Playa Or*. 

“ sans Soucl 
Tommy Trent 
Miriam. Barrens 
■ Victor Alverea 
La Serle Ore 
Ortega. Ore 


Leonall* Gonzales 
Xiomarm Alfaro 
Marta Castillo 
Berta Depuy 
Guayacbaroa 
Rolo Martinez 
Henry Boyer 
Tropleana Ballet 
S Suarez Orq 
Romeu Orq 


SAN FRANCISCO 


_A4G Club 
Larry Winters 
Geneva Vallier 
Leonard Dixon 
Blackhawk 
Billie Holiday 
Leroy Vinnegar 4 
Easy Str*«t 
Louis Armstrong 
Fack's 
June Christy 
Joe Valino 
Mel Young 

Fairmont Hotel 
Julie Wilson 
E. Heckscher Or*. 

Gar * 0 'a 
Bee A Ray 
Jack Farrell 
Joy Healy Dncra • 
Wally Ron Orb 


Earl Fatha Hines 
Ore 

MuggsF Spanler 
Jo*. Sullivan 
Hungry I 
Irwin ' Corey 
Kingston 3 
Joy Bryan 

Jazz Workshop 
Sonny Rollins 4 
On the Lav** 
Kid Ory Ore 


Traveler* 


Betty WUeon 
343 Club 
LIU St. Cyr 
Paul Desmond 
Moro-Landla Dcr* 
BUI Weir Ore 


RENQ 


Freddie Bell 
Sue Thompson 
Hank Penny 
Harolds Club 
Jo Ann Miller 
Twin Tunes 
Taylors 

Harrah's Club 
Lisa AlonSo 
Deedy A BUI 
Johnny Ukulele 
Don Baker 


Andrini Bros. 
Harry Bulk 


Bennett A Patterson 
Skyleta 

B Flbmatriek Ore. 
ItlvanM* 


Dunhingor ■ 
Saadtt Scott 


BUI Clifford Or* 
Alex Shey Trig 



63 


yejnead^ October 1, 1953 


kSsaaeff 


LEGITIMATE 


LURIE’S FRISCO ‘ICE’-BREAKER 




i 


And Pressagents Still Embarrassed 


By JESSE GROSS 

Restoration to the first and 
second night lists of most of 
the individuals who had been 
dropped from the rosters, per 
below, was accomplished at 
yesterday’s (Tues.) meeting. 

The cuts ordered by the Shu- 


berts in the first and second-night 
critics’ lists. for Broadway shows 
have put the New York legit 
pressagents on the spot. They’re 
being pelted with protests from 
individuals shorn of former privi¬ 
leges. 

Although members of the pub¬ 
licists chapter of the Assn, of 
Theatrical Pressagents & Mana¬ 
gers had met with Shubert repre¬ 
sentative Leonard Sang and agreed 
on a modification of the original 
slashes made by Shuberts, the sit¬ 
uation remains up in the air as far 
as the drumbeaters are concerned. 

A meeting to discuss the. matter 
was held by the Broadway p.a. 
group yesterday (Tues.). In a let¬ 
ter informing members of the con¬ 
clave, Merle Debuskey, chairman 
of the chapter) commented on the 
protests received, by those delet¬ 
ed from the lists'and the in-the- 
dark predicament of a number of 
publicists regarding the who’s who. 
Cuts, incidentally, were subse¬ 
quently agreed to by City Play¬ 
houses Inc. 

The reasons for calling the meet¬ 
ing Were summed up in Debuskey’s 
letter as follows: 

Perhaps upon reflection, 
the members feel they do not 
want a standard list. Perhaps 
they do not wish to accept 
the compromises that were 
made. .Perhaps they misun¬ 
derstood. Maybe they ioould 
now prefer to dump .the 
whole responsibility back up¬ 
on the individual producer to 
work out with the theatre 
owner - - 
The second night list is giving 
the pressagents the biggest head- 
(Continued on page 68) 

Tair Lady’ Tops Chicago 
Gross Mark of Tacific’ 
Bat in 20 Fewer Weeks 

Chicago, Sept. 30. 
Over the past weekend"“My Fair 
Lady” became the Windy City’s 
new boxoffice, champ, surpassing 
by several thousands the record. 
$3,204,380 held by “South Pacific” 
for more than six years. “SP” 
made its score in 67 weeks at a 
$5 top, while “Lady” did it in 47 
weeks at a $7 top. 

The hit tuner is still strong In 
Chicago, running close to capacity 
nearly every week. Probability is 
that it will run another six months 
at least, whereby it figures to pad 
its record gross by at least another 
million and a half. 

Not likely at this point, however,. 
that “My Fair Lady” will attempt 
to best the Chi long run record Of 
100 -weeks, set by “Good Night 
Ladies” (April 12, 1942 to March 
11, 1944). Unless, says manage¬ 
ment, Jane Powell agrees to take 
over the role of Liza Doolittle 
when Anne Rogers quits the com¬ 
pany around December. Feeling is 
that with Miss Powell on the mar¬ 
quee people who have seen the 
show, once or twice might return 
to catch the new star. 


Anna Russell Sets New 
British Provincial Tour 

London, Sept. 30. 

Anna Russell opens a new tour 
Oct. . 7 at the Festival Hall here 
and will play a second London date 
at the same house Nov. 15. ' The 
singer-satirist’s tour, will include 
the key provincial cities, plus Glas¬ 
gow-and Edinburgh, and the two 
university cities, Oxford and Cam¬ 
bridge. 

Miss Russell’s new record album, 
"Anna Russell’s Practical Banana 
Promotion,” will be. issued- by 
Philips to coincide with her tour. 

'vi-i 


4 -- : - 

HEATED TENT GOESON 


Carousel at Framington Pushes 
‘Season’ to Oct. 12 


| Framingham, Mass., Sept. 30. 

, Carousel Theatre, only strawhat 
musical tent still continuing, add¬ 
ed two weeks to its season with 
“The Moon Is Blue,” with Donald 
Wood, opening tonight, Tuesday 
(30), through Sunday (5). 

For the final show of the sea¬ 
son, Carousel, which has a radiant 
heat system going to ward off the 
fall chills, will open “Mr. Rob¬ 
erts” Oct. 7 through Oct. 12. ' 

The 3,000-seat music tent has 
been competing with legit thea¬ 
tres in downtown Boston all 
through September. 


Topeka Sellout 
For BTL Season 

Topeka, Sept. 30. 

Don’t try to tell anybody in 
Topeka that the road is dead. Local 
stage buffs, offered the chance to 
subscribe for four legit shows this 
season in the local highschool aud¬ 
itorium, stood all in line all day in 
a driving rain to buy out the entire 
2,404-seat capacity for the whole 
four-show series. 

It’s been: a byword in recent 
years that Topeka was a one-night 
graveyard, and the tepid local re¬ 
sponse to the few-arid-far-between 
touring shows has supported the 
premise. A notable instance was 
“Damn Yankees,” which pulled a 
miserable $3,400 last spring in a 
one-nighter at the'4,200-seat City 
Auditoripm. . 

There’s obviously a legit aud¬ 
ience hereabouts, however, and it 
responded to news stories about 
plans for a Broadway Theatre 
League subscription season of four 
touring shows. Due to sliD-ups, the 
mail come-dns and window cards 
for the drive were neyer used, and 
the single mail-order ad didn’t ap¬ 
pear until the day before the sale 
was to open, instead of the pre¬ 
vious Sunday, as planned. 

Although the b.o. didn’t open 
until 10 a.m., there was a long line 
[ at 8:30, despite the downpour, and 
for most of the day the string of 
(Continued, on page 68) 

BERT McCORD EXITS 
HERALD-TRIB POST 

Bert McCord is leaving his 
drama reporter’s pillar at the N.Y. 
Herald-Tribune within the • next 
three weeks. He had been at the 
Trib’s drama desk for the past 15 
years. A replacement will .be 
filled from the staff. 

McCord is switching from the 
Broadway scene to rural living in 
New, England • and a freelance 
writing career. 

Garland/Swindle’ Charge 
Hearing Set For Oct 14 

The initial referee's hearing re¬ 
garding all issues involved in the 
distribution of the remaining as¬ 
sets of Broadway Angels Inc., 
Hollywood Angels Inc: and Wallace 
Graydon Garland Productions will 
be held on Oct. 14 In New York at 
the .city's Assn, of the Bar. 

The referee, attorney Stanley 
Steingut, was appointed to take 
testimony and report recommenda¬ 
tions on the conflicting claims and 
intricate problems involved in the 
divvy of the assets; ’ The three 
firms, all formerly operated by 
Garland, are among the defendants 
In an action filed by the State, fol¬ 
lowing the ,N. Y. Attorney Gener¬ 
al’s accusation in 1955 that Gar¬ 
land had swindled about 4,000 in¬ 
vestors of $400,000. 

The Garland enterprises were 
involved principally in legit in- 


By WILLIAM STEIF 

San Francisco, Sept. 30. 

Louis R. Lurie, owner of the 
1,758-seat Curran Theatre and 
lessee of the adjoining -1,550-seat 
Geary, has instructed every ticket 
broker in San Francisco to lay off 
scalping any tickets for the Coast 
Company of “Auntie Marne,” open¬ 
ing at the Geary next Tuesday (7). 
! The show, set for a 10-week 
[Frisco run, had an advance of 
! more than $100,000 as of last week¬ 
end, $58,000 in mail orders alone. 

Lurie’s instructions were con¬ 
veyed to the local brokers in a 
letter from William Zwissig, who 
| runs the two houses. 

The letter followed, a demand 
, from Benny Stein, general mana¬ 
ger of the “Auntie Marne” com¬ 
pany now in Los Angeles, for 250 
house seats for opening night and 
60 pairs of house seats every night 
thereafter. 

This number of house seats la 
indeed in the fine print of the com¬ 
pany contract—or so Lurie indi¬ 
cated but neither he nor Zwissig 
were aware ot-athis clause until 
Stein made his demand. 

Then, admits Lurie, “I blew my 
top.” 

He further remarks, “I’m not 
(Continued .pn page 68) 


To the Investors 
As‘Swim’Sinks 

“Swim in the Sea,” the Fay 
Bainter starrer, which folded last 
Saturday (27) after two tryout 
weeks in Philadelphia, represents 
an approximate $50,000 loss of the 
$100,000 investment. The manage¬ 
ment has already returned $40,000 
to the backers and its anticipated 
that around $10,000 more may be 
forthcoming after all closing ex¬ 
penses arc covered. 

In an unusual move, the man¬ 
agement of the Jess Gregg come¬ 
dy-drama distributed the $40,000 
to the investors two days before 
the show’s closing. The producers 
had notified the backers of their 
decision to wrap up the presenta- 
i tion in Philly rather than sink ad¬ 
ditional coin into the venture to 
bring it to New York, where they 
felt its prospects were dim. 

The play, which was produced 
by Robert E. Griffith, Harold S. 
Prince and Shirley Ayers, was pre¬ 
viously tested as a stock entry In 
Florida last April 28-May 3. Fade 
marks the second straight play 
casualty for Griffith and Prince,, 
who’ve had a string of hit Broad¬ 
way musicals. Last season they 
were partnered^ with George Ab¬ 
bott in the NBC-finaced “Soft 
Touch,” which was jettisoned dur¬ 
ing rehearsals. ;> 

Incidentally, there was no office 
charge by. the management in con¬ 
nection with the operation of 
“Sea.” 


Nyack Bam Will Extend; 
Beckers to Tour Europe 

Nyack, N.Y., Sept. 30. 

The Tappan Zee Playhouse, which 
played a nine-week strawhat' sea¬ 
son this season, will extend to 12 
or 13 weeks next year, and may 
even try to continue into the early 
fall period. The lo'ng-dark former 
legit, vaude and film house will 
also probably be air-conditioned. 

Bruce Becker, operator of the 
spot, sailed last Saturday (27) with 
his wife and business associate. 
Honey Becker, for an extended 
motor tour of Europe. While in 
Paris, they will try to arrange for 
a French film production of “To¬ 
night in Samarkand,” the Jacques 
Deval drama which Becker pro¬ 
duced on Broadway several sea¬ 
sons ago, and on which he holds 
all rights. 


Alliance’s 22 Cities, 1 Weeks’ Dates 


On Subscription, Plus Guarantees 

- + Broadway Theatre Alliance, 


JACK LEMMON'S LEGIT 


‘Scourge’ Set Year Ahead-Rehear¬ 
sals Start In Sept. *59 


Hollywood,’ Sept., 30. 

Jack Lemmon has signed for 
lead role in Paul Gregory-staged 
“Scourge Of The Sun” which bows 
on Broadway next year. 

Actor, under non-exclusive two- 
pix pact annually to Columbia Pic¬ 
tures reports for “Scourge” re¬ 
hearsals in September of 1959. 

Studio has pre-empt rights on 
Victor. 


‘Seesaw’ Profit 
Is Now $229,285 

Backers of “Two for the See¬ 
saw” have netted nearly 100% thus 
far on their $80,000 investment. 
That’s based on a $145,000 profit 
distribution as of last Aug. 30. Re¬ 
turns are split equally between the 
investors and management. 

As of the latest audit, the Fred 
Coe production had earned a total 
profit of $229,285. That included 
an initial $78,700 installment on j 
the film sale, after deduction of' 
commissions and other expenses. I 
The rights were bought by Seven [ 
Arts Productions for $600,000, plus 
10% of the film gross over 
$3,500,000. 

The balance of “Seesaw” assets 
after the divvy of profits and other 
deductions was $56,584. The man¬ 
agement figures that $35,000 .of 
that will be required to produce 
the touring edition of the William 
Gibson comedy-drama. The road 
company, to costar Ruth Roman 
and' Jeffrey Lynn, -opens Oct. 6 at 
the Ford’s Theatre, Baltimore. 

The Broadway original, starring 
Dans Andrews and Lee Grant (sub¬ 
bing for the vacationing Anne Ban¬ 
croft), is currently in its 37th week 
at the Booth Theatre, N. Y. 


FRANK HALE ABROAD 
ON TRINCESS’CASTING 

Frank J. Hale, producer of the 
Royal Poinciana Playhouse, Palm 
Beach, headed for Europe last 
week to- talk with Moira Shearer 
and Thomas Beecham for possible 
guest-shots in his Florida theatre. 
He is producing an original full- 
length ballet, “The Princess,” by 
Marin Bragiotti, and wants top 
names, lead dancer and conductor. 

Among Hale’s other interests are 
ballet shorts, which he produces 
mainly for dance instruction. I 
■ - _ j 

Stratford (Ont) Fest’s 
$664,600 Season Gross 

. Stratford, Qnt., Sept. 30. 

The Stratford Shakespeare fes¬ 
tival grossed approximately $664,- 
600 for the season which ended 
Sept. 13, nearly $50,000 ahead of 
its best previous record. Total at¬ 
tendance was over 218,000, an in¬ 
crease of 35,000 over the previous 
record. 

The 12-week season of Shakes¬ 
peare -repertory (“Henry IV,” 
“Much Ado About Nothing” and; 
“Winter’s Tale”) grossed $583,000 
on 81% of capacity in the ,2,196- 
seat Festival Theatre, including a 
smash 12,000 attendance (95%) at 
six special reduced-price matinees 
for school children the final week.; 

The nine-week- season at the 
Avon Theatre, offering five weeks 
of music, two of ^ films and two of 
Montreal’s Le Theatre du Nouveau; 
Monde in “La Malade Imaginaire” 
drew nearly 40,000 attendance for 
a. $81,600 gross, almost double the 
previous season figure. 

* Festival officals plan a 12-week, 
two-production Shakespeare reper¬ 
tory next summer at the Festival 
Theatre, and music and films again 
at.the Avon.. 


which entered the legit booking 
field last year, will have subscrip¬ 
tion setups in 22 cities this season, 
comprising almost seven weeks of 
playing time. It also is booking 
non-subscription dates, mostly on 
guarantee. 

The legit agency, a subsidiary of 
Columbia Artists Management, ex¬ 
pects to have subscription in 60 
cities next season and 100 the fol¬ 
lowing season. By that time, the 
subscription playing time will total 
about 40 weeks, spanning the en¬ 
tire non-summer months compris¬ 
ing the legit season. 

BTA is sending out four shows this 
fall, but may increase the number 
in future years if and as the public 
appetite for legit increases in sub¬ 
scription cities. Already playing 
BTA subscription dates is the Syl¬ 
via Sidney company of “Auntie 
Marne.!’ Slated to go out soon are 
touring companies of “Li’l Abner” 
and “The Diary of Anne Frank,” 
the latter starring Francis Lederer. 
The fourth tourer hasn’t been set, 
but a prospect is in negotiation. 
Season subscription prices are in 
four categories, from $1 to $7. 

Following are the BTA subscrip¬ 
tion cities for this season, with the 
number of subscription per¬ 
formances for each (in most cases, 
local subscription campaigns are 
still in progress, so subscriber 
totals are unavailable): 

Atlanta, 3; Beaumont, 1; Bir¬ 
mingham, 2; Charlotte, N. C., 2; 
Columbia, S. C., 1; Ft. Wayne, 2; 
Ft. Worth, 1 or 2; Greensboro, 
N. C., 2; Houston, 3; Knoxville, 1; 
Lincoln, 1; Memphis, 3; Mont¬ 
gomery, 1; New Orleans, 4; Roches¬ 
ter, 3; San Antonio, 1; Sioux City, 
1; Topeka, 1 (see separate story); 
Tulsa, 2; Utica, 2; White Plains, 
N. Y., 2; Wichita, 2. 


’Banned’ Nice Word For 
Subscription Secretary 
Of Glasgow Society 

Glasgow, Sept. 23. 

The Citizens’ Theatre, leading 
local legit group, has again 
launched a new season with a 
banned play. Public performances 
of the opener, Tennessee Williams* 
“Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” are pro¬ 
hibited, with the audience limited 
to members of the Citizens.’ Thea¬ 
tre Society. 

The situation is a repeat of last 
season when the Citizens’ got un¬ 
derway with Arthur Miller’s “View 
From the Bridge,” another banned 
play. It’s figured that the "banned” 
appellation, which hypoes both 
public and-press interest, aids in 
increasing Theatre Society mem¬ 
bership since only members of that 
org are permitted to purchase 
tickets for such offerings. The cost 
of joining the Society is 80c yearly. 

Although, commenting that the 
Citizens’ is aware of the publicity 
value, Michael Goldberg, chairman 
of the operation's board of direc¬ 
tors, claims the decision to ooetf 
the new season with another 
banned play was not a stunt. Other 
plays slated for Citizens* presenta¬ 
tion this season include “Summer 
of the 17th Doll,” “She Stoops to 
Conquer” and a four-week Scot 
repertory festival, with the Citi¬ 
zens’, the Edinburgh Gateway Co., 
the Perth Theatre and the Dundee 
Repertory participating. 


‘Godunov’ in Russian 
With Christoff, Resnik 

London, Sept. 30. 

Boris Christoff will sing the title 
role in a Covent Garden produc¬ 
tion of Moussorgsky’s opera “Boris 
Godunov,” which opens the fall 
opera season on October 31. The 
opera will be sung for the first time 
in Russian at the Royal Opera 
House. 

Regina Resnik will sing princess 
Marina. Others in the cast include 
Edith Coates, John Lanigan and 
Otaker Kraus. 




64 


LEGITIMATE 


PJOelETl 


Tedirtaday, October l t 1953 


Shows Out of Town 


The Marria ge Ce I mi 

San Francisco. Sept. 17. ! 

Paul Gregory pr aduititm of 
I^eille Stevens. Stars Claudette Colbert 
and Cbarle* Boyer; features Jntte- New- 
jnar, Edmon Ryan. Directed by Joseph 
Anthony; settings gnd lighting by ItoneM 
Oenslager. Opening Sept. 37, *9$ at 

Alcazar. San Francisco;: $6-50 top. 

Paul Deivill» ........... Chariee Boyer 

Content Lowell.Claudette Colbert 

Xatrin Sveg.Julio Newmar 

Rosa Barnett.Edmond Ryan 


In “The Marriage-Go Bound,** 
which opened tonight at the Al¬ 
cazar, producer Paul Gregory has 
come acropper. His production Is 
splendid physically. The four char¬ 
acters, and especially Charles 
Boyer, are satisfactory. Donald 
Oenslager 1 * settings and lights are 
fine. Joseph Anthony's direction la 
as good as can be expected under 
the circumstances. But Leslie 
Stevens' bedroom comedy is tedi¬ 
ous and witless. 

Two-and-a-hali-hour show hangs 
on one quasi-joke: should a middle- 
aged college professor, happily 
married 25 years, allow himself to 
go to bed with a brilliant, blonde 
aTp?«vni of 24 who wants him to be 
the father of her baby? 

It takes more than two hours of 
incessant talk to get an answer to 
this relatively simple question, and 
then the answer is only “maybe” 
and the audience hardly cares. 

Boyer plays the Professor, Clau¬ 
dette Colbert his. wife, mother of 
grown children and herself a col¬ 
lege dean. Boyer starts show with 
lecture on monogamy from podium 
at one side of stage. Miss Colbert 
follows immediately with lecture 
on happy marriage from podium at 
opposite side. Then they step onto 
revolving stage to. greet big blonde, 
played by Julie Newman who has 
come from Sweden and decided 
Boyer would be perfect genetic 
specimen to produce perfect child 
with her. 

Two acts depict various stages of 
triangle with Idmon Byan Intro¬ 
duced in small part of professorial 
foil for Miss Colbert. 

Throughout show two principals 
step off stage to podiums for coy 
asides to audience. Boyer manages 
to stay in character as lecturer— 
This is a tribute to his acting skill. 
But MTm Colbert loses lecturer’s 
poise during second act, lets her 
voice become shrill and turns into 
hysterical wife. She also displayed 
annoying, habit of speaking with, 
head- turned away from audience. 

Miss Newmar is vastly sexy and 
” almost believable in an unbeliev¬ 
able role. Play’s r esol u ti o n, unfor¬ 
tunately, has Boyer suddenly talk¬ 
ing Miss Newmar into seeking hus¬ 
band instead of perfect genetic 
specimen and strain of this* final 
touch of unreality destroys any il¬ 
lusion she may have built. 

Flay is built on salvos of one- 
line wisecracks of this order: “He 
makes Rocky Marciano look like 
a little girl ” and "Mercy Me, 
that’s Boston for m be damned ” 

Such gags lose their fizz very 
quickly and by second act “Msr- 
riage-Go-Round” is Acceedingly 
thin, barren and too long. 

- Oenslager’s 360-degree revolving 
set includes living room, kitchen 
and corner nook at Howard John¬ 
son’s restaurant. It's slick. 

For Broadway Gregory and An-1 
thony will have to cut half-hour 
and find some funnier lines than 
Stevens so far has supplied. Film 
possibilities at this juncture are 
nil. Steif. 


Pitate 

New Haven. Sept. 24. 

Gilbert Mffler presentation #f comedy 
in three acts by Irwin Shiv, from the 
French, of Marcel AchartL Starr Tam 
Ewell; feature* Lee Bowmen, Xaaey 
Wickwire, Mnrial William*. Susan. Oliver. 
Directed by EL C. Potter; wttinrr, Ray¬ 
mond Sovey; ceetumes supervised by 
Kathryn Miller. At. Shaker* Theatre, New 
Haven, Sept. 34, *38; $4.80 top. 

Lean Kollo..Tom Xwdt 

Edith Relle.Nancy Wickwire 

Butler ... ... George Turner 

Veronlque Taillads..Maria! Williams 

Noel Taillade __...... Lee Bewman 

Alexa Kollo . Sums. Ottver 


“Patate” has “promise** but Is 
going to require a more successful 
transition of Gallic values into 
American Values before it can 
hope to leap the smash hit bar¬ 
ricade. -Present problem seeming-: 
ly is to shed emphasis which per¬ 
haps had weight in the Paris, yer-. 
sion but invites a different type of 
reaction stateside. This applies 
especially to the central character 
who, currently, though reasonably I 
amusing, should also, draw con- • 
siderahle audience sympathy, but 
does not as presently portrayed. 

Optimistic factor favoring prop¬ 
erty is general laugh content which , 
provides a sound foundation for] 
possible expansion. Fortunately 
there’s ample tuneup time (four 
more weeks), indications being 
that present experimenting with 
several roles may jell, and play 
could hit Broadway as a. candidate 
for survival. 

“Patate” is the French equival¬ 


ent of “fall-guy,** which Is the role 
assigned Tom Swell. Playing the 
patsy to a polished shady operator 
(Lee Bowman), Ewell has taken 
the rap for a variety of offenses' 
committed by Bowman, a smooth 
heel who has even gone so far as 
to teach the facts of life to Ewell’s 
18-year-old adopted daughter. A 
shift in circumstances momentarily 
places Bowman at Ewell’s mercy 
but latter softens up when chance 
for revenge actually presents it¬ 
self. Role should generate au¬ 
dience sympathy hut that facet is 
being glossed over, as of the em¬ 
phasis at New Haven opening. 

Ewell is right for the patsy part, 
grabbing off a good share of 
laughs, but .as yet hasn’t got his 
teeth into the role, partially due 
to- adaptation. Bowman does the 
gentleman crook very well, with 
emphasis on unruffled delivery. 
Nancy Wickwire gives considerable 
understanding to the role of Ewell’s 
forthright and faithful wife (part 
since taken over by Hafla Stod¬ 
dard as of the Boston run); Mu- 
rial WOliams adds ample gracious¬ 
ness as Bowman's wealthy wife who 
buys his way out of scrapes; Susan 
Oliver contributes rampant charm 
as the daughter who ignores the 
rules of propriety. 

Pace at play’s opening is lethar¬ 
gic, first act serving merely to 
prepare action. ‘Best moments 
come in final frame as staging 
builds to interesting climax. Con¬ 
trasting lush and modest Parisian 
-living rooms are in good taste and 
there’s opportunity for a nice 
femme apparel display, 
i. Irwin Shaw’s translation is said 
to stick pretty elose. to original 
version but might do well to get 
away from certain French charac¬ 
teristics for better Yank apprecia¬ 
tion. Bone. 


MaaltfheBtg-Salt 

Wilmington, Sept. 30/ 

Producers Tbeetre production >f thr ee- 
act comedy by filbert Belch ant WlUlam 
H. Wright, from naval by Mwb Carl*. 
Star* Joooica Tandy, and Ham* Crow 
features Cathlean. Nesbitt and. Carmen 
Andrews. Directed by Ralph Nelson; set¬ 
ting and light,. Donald 6enalLag«r; cos¬ 
tume a. Anna Hill Johnstone; associate: pro¬ 
ducer, Lewis Allen. At Playhouse, Wil¬ 
mington, DeL, Sept. 34 to 37, four eve¬ 
ning performances, Saturday matinee; 
$5.40 top. 

Martha Wallins ......... Jearfea Tandy 

Ottver Walling-.Hume Crony* 

Geerge Stoddard . John. Griggs 

EHean. Stoddard.Canaan, Mathews 

Henry Gaston..Jehu M c G erecn 

lady Gaxton, .......... Nancy Clubman 

Mrs. Louisa Stoddard. Cathlooa NosMtt 

Stewart Stoddard_...dints* Sandberg 

Anthony Robert!.:.. Tam Carlin 

Hr. Beal.. Arthis Hagbea 


Contemporary American society, 
smug in stereotyped homes, fobs 
and recreation with “security” as 
life’s ultimate, is gently rocked and 
rolled from its foundations by an 
ordinary guy with A plausible 
dream and normal frustrations who 
finds escape and a more exciting 
self as ‘The Man In the Dog Suit” 
Co-starring the highly compat¬ 
ible man-and-wife team—Hume 
Crpnyn mid Jessica Tandy—this 
warm marital comedy gives a 
charmingly funny twist to a hot 
uncommon, situation: A good Joe 
. married to a beautiful and devoted 
gal whose family feels he’s quite 
inferior but have accepted him 
with a few revisions and Improve¬ 
ments which they continue, to 
.make over the years. 

Gronyn in the title role of Oliver 
Walling and Miss Tandy as spouse, 1 
Martha, bring tears and laughter 
and sympathetic response. They 
; live in a typical American suburb, 
have six-year-old twin sons attend¬ 
ing. a boys’ camp with. a. typical 
American Indian name, and after 
nine years of married life, Oliver 
and Martha have fallen into the 
usual state of taking one another 
for granted, but the romantic glow 
of their first meeting in Italy is 
readily revived by playing the rec¬ 
ord, “Isle of Capri.” 

It is on this reminiscent note 
that the curtain rises on the Wal¬ 
lings in a playful mood and in a 
dim light, returning from a mas¬ 
querade party at the country dub. 
Scenic and lighting effects add to 
the enchantment and gaiety of this 
opening scene which also intro¬ 
duces the dog-suit—Oliver’s cos¬ 
tume. The guise quite feasibly be¬ 
comes an exhilarating obsession 
with him and a fly in the ointment 1 
for his in-laws, the Stoddards, a 
family of prestige; affluence, ex¬ 
treme conventionality, and skele¬ 
tons in the closet. 

The Stoddards have gone to all 
well-meaning ends, to fit Oliver 
into their mold, the first step hav-, 
ing been to find his a niche in the 
hanking world (at this point head 
teller), although he got his degree 
in forestry and Is still movea to 
great emotion on the subject of 
trees, fungus, etc., especially with 
alcoholic stimulation and in his 
dog-suit. 

The grotesque costume, its large, 
Tolling; head representing a Ger¬ 
man shepherd, cuts a convulsing 
figure whether hanging in the 


closet or on Walling. Yet, after 
becoming acclimated, fine is in¬ 
clined to agree that a fellow of 
Oliver's submerged personality has 
to go somewhere to refuel his ego 
and the dog suit does the trick- So 
naurh so that it becomes habit 
forming and he is unable to fac£ a 
crisis without it. 

This is both frightening and re¬ 
pugnant to the Stoddards and a 
threat to the family’s good name 
since Walling makes several im¬ 
promptu public appearances in the 
weird garb. When the -time comes 
for a promotion at the bank (Stod¬ 
dard-controlled), the ultimatum is 
issued: the loan officer's desk or 
the dog-suit. This crucial decision, 
of course, is the roeat of the play. 

This almost tender satire is beau¬ 
tifully executed with sensitive ap¬ 
preciation for minor details, ges¬ 
tures, expressions, actions. Even 
some^of the silences are pregnant 
with humor or warm human feel¬ 
ing. However, some of these gaps 
must be closed to sharpen the pace 
and cutthe running tune. 

Cathleen Nesbitt as Mother Stod¬ 
dard comes forth' in a manner be¬ 
fitting her stature as a veteran of 
nearly 50 years in the theatre. She 
endears herself with her studied 
sweetness, understanding and ma¬ 
ternal concern, the subtie. poison 
of which both makes and breaks. 

Cronyn as the square peg in a 
round hole has an hilarious com¬ 
plement in Carmen Mathews, non¬ 
conformist married to the real 
estate tycoon of the Stoddard fam- 
i fly. As Eileen Stoddard she not 
only has the big corner on laugh 
lines, but she hits the jackpot 
every time with crisp and clever 
delivery and synchronized expres¬ 
sions and attitudes as she adroitly 
affects various stages of inebria¬ 
tion. 

John McGovern gives a com¬ 
manding performance as Harry 
Gaxton, dentist-turneeLhenk-presi- 
dent under Stoddard influence. 
Arthur Hughes as the slightly de¬ 
ranged Mr. Beal, a pixie of a man 
who makes like a helicopter, seels 
the play's theme andhja own pop¬ 
ularity in his “takeoff and landing” 
hit ; 

Tom Carlin, a pertonahle and 
promising young actoriJtt the role 
of Anthony Robertt-ipother odd 
patch in the Stoddar^riullt, is the 
unwitting generator" of amusing 
events creating this-comedy. The 
son of Mother Stoddard's sister, 
whq committed the indiscretion of 
marrying an Italian gardner, it is 
Tony’s trip East from Omaha to 
become remodeled as a* Stoddard 
i that oils Oliver’s wheels of mem¬ 
ory and rebellion, thus motivating 
t his frequent retreats into dog-suit. 

I This comedy by Albert Belch 
and Wflliam H. Wright, from a 
novel by Edwin Corie. should go 
well on Broadway, after a little 
fine tailoring. Neatly avoiding slap¬ 
stick, the topnotch east pokes fun 
at familiar aspects of American 
Hfe, mischievously Invading home,, 
office, heart and a man’s day¬ 
dreams. 

A departure from the ultra-smart 
and arty, the homely humor of 
“Man in the Dog Suit” is Infectious, 
The dialog and situations are con¬ 
sistently runny and their harmoni¬ 
ous flow is evidence of capable 
direction. The show promises ex¬ 
cellent wearing of the dog-suit. 

Burroughs. 


Make A MiUlea 

Atlantic City, Sept. 24. 

Joel SpecCor and Sylvia. Hams prases 
tation of three-act: comedy 1y Norma] 
Barasctt and CarxoU Moor*. Stayer, Sn 
Stem; associate director. Ty Parry; act- 
tins and Rshttnc. Paul Morrison; eoe 
: turn*a. Ana. Both. Prta antei at Warren 
Theatre. Atlantic City. Sept. M. *3 »; " 
fop. - 

Claire Manning ......... Neva Patterson 

Mail Bor .Daaais Richard* 

Batty Phillips . Joy Hannon 

Mait from Coffe* 

“■—*■ ’ - ”— unr _ 

Hickey 

Julie Martin .. fifingWedieworth 

Mr. Merfcnthaler 'f^ Balj- 

Dorothy Gray.'f.ynn 1 

Lt. Friadlander ........ Ed __ 

General Potter .........Den Wilson 

Farris ..ffiMchard Bair 

Kins ......V^Coand Janla 

Reeves ../^fiennl* Richards 

Fitzpatrick ..............,v*Ed Crowley 

Juliano ..Guy Perone 

First MJ>. Hoke Hdwell 

Second MJ».... Ty Party 

Cameraman .. Hake Haven 

Reverend Conklin .......... Don Marye 

Henry Whipple.. Hoke Hewell 

Telephone Operator.. ..Barbara Barkley 


“Make A Million” with Sam 
Levene in the starring role and 
Don Wilson, of radio and tv, in the 
cast, is the second tryout play to 
come to Atlantic City’s boardwalk, 
once * breakin haven. For the 
first act it looks as though its on 
its way to make nearly a million 
for its backers. Unhappily the 
action soon fizzles though a largo, 
hard-working cast of 18 geta plenty 
of laughs, despite-the leveling off. 
\ Three-acter is spoof x>fthe tele¬ 
vision quiz program fad, timely 
-now with the fix probes underway. 
It tells the story of a producer 
(Levene) harrassed by. Incidents 
which threaten his program. Top 
(Continued on page 96) 


Off-Broadway Reviews 


Vetolsfi 

Gena Dinyanary produettan of three- 
act drama by Jama* For^th. Staged, by 
Nadine Miles; settings >and lighting; 
Henry Kurth; costa mas, Thaoni Vaddiou 
Aldredge; music, Crawford Wright. At 
Gate Theatre, N.Y.* Sept, S4, S3.90 

top. 

(Cast: Alan Arkin, J&tgh Pahnerston, 
Brendan Fay, Mitzi Hoag. SOI Serlin, 
Richard Neilson, Steve Wolfson, Eugene 
Miles, Sue Trevathan. 


When “Heloise” is raging with 
intellectual conflict, it Is a fiery 
play. The first act, and most of 
the third, of James Forsyth’s 
romantic drama, are concerned 
with gleaming ideological and 
spiritual conflict that make a visit 
to lower 2nd Ave.’* Gate Theatre 
enormously rewarding. 

Forsyth, a British playwright, is 
said to have written his version 
of the celebrated Abelard-Heloise 
romance in dribs and drabs during 
World War n, sending scenes home 
from the front as finished for 
later reassembling ipto pl*Y *°rm. 
Less inspiring theatre by far has 
often been written, under more 
favorable circumstances, and al¬ 
though Forsyth’s history is episodic, 
it discloses a king-sized talent for 
: dramatic craftsmanship, as well as 
literary writing of a high order, 
talents not always found Ifi tandem. 

The play runs almost full gamut 
of the renowned love affair be¬ 
tween the man who had one of the 
finest minds of the middle ages, 
and the not-much-less gifted 
woman whom he loved. Their pre¬ 
marital union that brought forth 
a child, the subsequent furtive 
marriage designed not to binder 
his progress under churchly aus¬ 
pices, the fiendldi revenge (emas¬ 
culation) taken by Heloise’s doting 
clerical uncle, canon of Notre 
Dame, and the spiritual further¬ 
ance of their love through taking 
of holy orders, are all touched 
upon. 

The age's conflicts between faith 
tad reason are exploited, and the 
play’s underlying theme is the 
essential unity of love: That these 
elements have been made dynamic¬ 
ally theatrical is the play’s suc¬ 
cess. 

The tasteful production that 
Gene Dingenary has provided, the 
discreet staging by Nadine Miles 
against Henry Kurth’s painting- 
like unit sets, are fruitful labors. 
In fact, the Gate Theatre itself, 
formerly a church; is a good 
milieu for this ipedieval excursion 

As the .discerningly glowing 
Heloise, Mitzi Hoag has clarity of 
tongue and spirit as she shows 
the girl and woman hoiqhiff her 
own with the great grinds of her 
time. Eugene Miles' Abelard is a 
rather dry, ascetic, occasionally 
pedantic man, whose passion is, 
paradoxically, most fully realised 
in the closing scenes of monastic 
self-deniaL ' 

As Abelard’s intellectual rival, 
Richard Neilson Is .crisply stirring. 
Hugh Palmerston's worldly villain 
is replete with cynicism, while Sol 
Serlin’s portrait of the canonical 
unde, who plots Abelard's emas¬ 
culation, suffers from an attempted 
rationalization through use of a 
[senile dementia that' is st odds 
with history,' 

f “Heloise” was first produced 
seven years ago in London. Its 
local unveiling brings distinction 
to the new theatrical season. 

' Geor. 


David Ross revival of louMct treaedy 
by Frank Wodtkhad. as translated bjr 
Staphen Spender and Fr an ce s Fawcett. 
Stars Eva Gabor, Harold Haktn Claranc* 
Dartrant. Feature* Don Fellows. Marcel 
HWaire, EdyarFtanksn. Patrick 0*NeaL 
Staged by Rosa; settings. Eldon. Mar. At 
4th. St. Theatre, N.Y-. Sept, 38, *»; $4.45 

*°$asf: David Roes, Eve Gabor, Jack 
Adams, Haralfi Huber. Patrick O'Neal.. I 
Edgar Frauken, Don Fellow*. Loll Robin- 1 
•on, Clarence Derwent, Lore Note, Mareet 
HUlaire, Ruth. Majtaaa. Andreas Vout- 
sinai, Michael Mann. William Bassett. - 


Time and David Ross have con¬ 
verted Frank Wedekind's sex 
tragedy, “Earth Spirit,” into the 
sex comedy, “Lulu.” With a marked 
assist from Stephen Spender and 
Frances Fawcett, who have pro¬ 
vided a painfully literal translation, 
sufficient to tax the concentration 
of the most straightforward actor. 

With its accent on prurience, the 
German playwright’s script was 
originally a Victorian shocker, a 
theatrical piece of importance in 
its day for frankness of theme and 
explicitness of story and language. 
Somewhere lurking in the shadows 
of the ffir corners, of the 4th St. 
arena theatre, there is an inkling 
of the play’s essential .tragedy. 
Neither in adaptation nor in stag¬ 
ing, however, has this basic ele-i 
ment been allowed to get on stage. 

The heroine, if that’s the term, is 
calculating, oversexed, demoniac. 
She destroys' every male with 
whom she comes in contact. One 
dies of a heart attack, one cuts his 
throat, another she. shoots, after 
telling him that she poisoned his 


[ first wife. (This man she really 
,4°yesJ 

' The girl started her manhunt as 
a barefooted 12-year old flower 
girl. She seduces father and son, 
fogey and fledgling,, prince or 
pauper, without discrimination, ex¬ 
cept Insofar as this affair or that 
may advance her career or assure 
her of creature comforts. By the 
end, bored with it all, she has 
resorted to lesbianism. 

Eva Gabor tackles this Witch’s 
stint in Ross’s revival. She plays it 
straight, being kittenish, or thp 
vixen as required, narrowing her 
deepest eyes in cruel lust, curling 
her generous mouth as lovers 
grovel at her feet, clutching vir¬ 
tually the entire male cast to her 
decollete bosom at one point or 
another in the evening’s proceed¬ 
ings. 

As the surrounding court of 
males, such worthies as Clarence* 
Derwent and Harold Huber daunt- 
lessly show the way, taking hold 
of the improbable lines and read¬ 
ing them with authority, force and 
as much conviction as an actor may 
muster under such disconcerting., 
circumstances. For each, it is valor 
beyond the call of duty. 

In a later play of Wedekind’s, 
Lulu Is hacked to bits by one oz 
her clients. None too soon, either. 

Gear. 


The Ym 


& Frovtoclals 

Stage Eotenriaae .product!** *f three- 
act comady-arama by Ben Levinson. 
Staled by Levinaen; setting* and lighting, 
Pec ala. At tha Cricket Theatre* N.Y* 
Sept. 18, '38; $3.49 ton. 
a Cari: Jonaie Horton, Luke Askow, 
Barbara Pitcher, James Gere, Jeha O’Con¬ 
nor, Gena YannL 


"The Young Provincials” ap¬ 
parently falls Into the: category of 
comedy-drama. The Ben Levinson 
piece purports to be about young 
artist intellectuals who are really 
“hicks “ the provincials of the title. 
It is very bad. 

After a week’s delay occasioned 
by the author-director’s bout with 
recurrent malaria, “Provincials” 
has opened the Cricket Theatre, 
N.Y. Levinson was originally being 
triple threat by acting in his play 
as well, but withdrew because of 
his Illness. 

The four principal players, two 
young men and two young women* 
are all making their New' York 
debut In this production. Pinch- 
hitting for Levinson in the play’s 
only character role Is an experi¬ 
enced actor named John O'Connor. 
He cannot improve on the' play, but 
he does demonstrate quickly and 
effectively how to inform a seen* 
with drive and tension. The junior 
quartet xould well take note. 

/ At one point, after a young lady 
whom an artist la about to sketch 
has been talking a great deal, she 
asks him how ho sees her. “Right, 
now,” quoth be, “as all mourn-** 
It got the laugh. <teor. 


Base* Renew 


The America* Ballet Theatro 
opened the second week of its 
current Metonera Hoosa stand; 
with the world, premiere of “Jour¬ 
ney,” an introopoctlve apostrophe 
to death -and final judgment, to 
music of Bela Barfok and with 
stimulatlngly Imaginative choreo¬ 
graphy by England's Kenneth 
MacMillan. This ballet was tried 
on the dor, so to speak, during the 
company’s aeries of programs at 
the. Phoenix Theatre during. May 
1957, and since that time It-bag 
been refined. Its essentials re¬ 
main the same, however, it is still 
avant garde ballet and may not 
soon become popular with (or, per¬ 
haps, especially not with) con¬ 
firmed balletomanes. 

The mood Is grimly imcom- 
promlsing. the costuming is starkly 
drab, the setting is green-hued 
ahd cavernous, what Kora Kaye 
does within-this grisly milieu, as 
she portrays a soul In limbo, is 
certainly hot glum. With ascetic 
precision, emotional knowledge and 
remarkable discipline, she uses 
her gifts for characterization sa 
that much Of this ballet becomes 
deeply affecting. 

Even when in repose, Miss Kaye 
has the facility to make the stage 
all hers. When she Is merely 
sitting quietly, with action swirl¬ 
ing risewhere. ft is virtually Im¬ 
possible to shift attention from 
her very Immobility. 

MacMillan is unquestionably a 
highly gifted choreographer, and 
that this Company hag had the 
courage to place this enigmatic 
ballet in repertoire is a distinct 
credit, for despite occasional self- 
consciousness, “Journey” is a 
masterly work that should achieve 
permanence. 

The balance of the program con¬ 
sisted of -the Bahmchine-Tchaiko w- 
sky .“Theme* and' Variations," 
(Continued on page M) 


































Wednesday, October 1, 1958 


KXftlETr 


LEGITIMATE 


Read OK; Dog 11%G (5), WmBgton openRemm ilB’way Off; ‘Jamaica’41G, ‘Angel’ 23G, 


Vfc49 1 / 2 G ) Sf.;‘Patate’2(iy 2 G(5),N.H. 
‘Husk’ 80^G, LA.; ‘Anger’ 22G, Balto 


The road, which is bustling with 
activity, had another good session 
last week. Business was healthy 
for most of the pre-Broadway and 
touring entries, with a number of 
shows in the sellout or virtual ca¬ 


pacity groove. Among those were ing next Saturday (4 
“Can-Can,” "Girls in 509," “Goldi- - 


(MC-RS) (6th wk) ($6.40-$5.90; 
2,670; $80,000). Nearly $80,500, 
with the windup -of CLO subscrip¬ 
tion hiking the capacity mark. 
Previous week, $75,300. Exited 
last night (Tues.) for Dallas open¬ 
ing next Saturday (4). 


locks,” "Music Man,” “Touch of the 
Poet 5 ' and “World of Suzie Wong.” 

There was one tryout fold, 
"Swim in the Sea,” which wrapped 
up Saturday (27) after a fortnight 
In Philadelphia. 

Estimates for Last Week 

Parenthetic designations lor out- 
oj-tovm shows are the same as for 
Broadway , except that hyphenated 
IT with show classification indicates 
tryout and RS indicates road show . 
Also, prices on touring shows in* 
elude?10% Federal Tax and local 
tax, if any, but as on Broadway 
grosses are net ; ie. exclusive of 
taxes. Engagements are for single 
week unless otherwise noted. 

ATLANTIC CITY 

Make a Million, Warren (C-T) ($5- 
$4; 1,470; $33,000) (Sam Levene). 
Over $27,000 for seven perfor¬ 
mances on local subscription. 
Exited Monday (29) for Philadel¬ 
phia. 

BALTIMORE 

Look Back in Anger, Ford's (D- 
RS) ($4.40; 1,819; $43,000). Over 
$22,000 on Guild subscription 
for - first post-Broadway touring 
week. Exited Saturday (27) for 
Toronto. 

BOSTON 

Drink to Me Only, Wilbur (C-T) 
(1st wk) ($4-95-$4.40; 1,241; $32,- 
€99). Opened Sept. 22 to one rave 
(Maloney, Traveler), two affirma¬ 
tives (Doyle, American; Hughes, 
Hfcrald), one semi-affirmative (Dur- 
gin. Globe), one no-opinion (Mel¬ 
vin, Monitor) and one yes-no (Nor¬ 
ton, Record); almost $19,700. 
Previous week, $26,700 for seven 

E rformances at the Warren, At- 
ltic City/ Exits next Saturday 
(4) for New York. 

Goldilocks, Shubert (MC-T) (1st 
wk) ($6.25-$4.95; 1,717; $52,000). 
Opened last Wednesday (24) to 
unanimous yes-no reviews (Doyle, 
American; Durgin, Globe; Hughes,. 
Herald; Maloney, Traveler; Melvin, 
Monitor; Norton, Record); over 
$34,300 for five performances. 
Previous week; $53,100 at the Er- 
langer, Philadelphia. Musical, 
with Don Ameche having replaced 
Barry Sullivan as Elaine Stritch’s 
costar, exits for New York next 
Saturday (4). 

Tonek of the Poet. Colonial (D- 
T) (2d wk) ($5.50-$4.95; 1,500; $41,- 
000) (Helen Hayes, Eric Portman, 
Betty Field, Kim Stanley). Over 
$39,400 on Guild subscription- 
Previous, week, $39,300. Exited 
Saturday (27)- for New York. 

. CHICAGO 

Auntie Marne,' Erianger (C-RS) 
(4th wk) ($6.60-$5.50; 1,333; $45,187) 
(Constance Bennett). Over $39,- 
100 on Guild subscription. Pre¬ 
vious week, $38,800. Continues in¬ 
definitely. 

Mask and Gown. Great Northern 
fR-RS) (1st wk) ($4J95-$4-40; 1^00; 
$32,000) (T. C. Jones)! Opened 
last Wednesday (24) to one affirma¬ 
tive notice (Dettmer, American), 
two yes-no reviews (Norris, Sun- 
Times; Harris, Daily News) and one 
pan (Raven, Tribune); almost $8,600 
for five performances. Previous 
week, $17,000 at the Hartford, Los 
Angeles. May fold next Satur¬ 
day (4). 

My Fair Lady, Shubert (MC-RS) 
(47th wk) ($7; 2,100; $72,979). Al¬ 
most $61,800. Previous week, $61,- 
200. Continues indefinitely. 

CLEVELAND 

Can-Can, Hanna (MC-RS) ($3.50; 
1,515; $34,210) (Genevieve). -Al¬ 
most $33,500 for seven perfor¬ 
mances. Exited Saturday (27) for 
Detroit. 

DETROIT 

Romanoff and Juliet, Cass (C-RS) 
(1st wk) ($4.95; 1,482; $41,000) 
(Peter Ustinoff). Over $35,400. 
Previous week, $39,600 at the 
Royal Alexandra, Toronto. Exits 
next Saturday (4) for Cincinnati. 

LOS ANGELES 

Auntie Marne, Biltmore. (C-RS1 
(7th wk) ($5.50-94.40; 1,636; $51,- 
600) (Eve Arden). Almost $50,006, 
Previous week, $51,500. Exits 
next Saturday (4) for Frisco. 
Mule Man, Philharmonic Aud* 


NEW HAVEN 

Patate, Shubert (C-T> (5 perfs) 
($4.80; 1,650; $26,000) (Tom Ewell). 
Over $20,500 for five perfor¬ 
mances. Exited Saturday (27) for 
Boston.- 

PHILADELPHIA 

Handful of Fire, Locust (D-T) 
(2d wk) <$5-$L50; 1,418; $35,000) 
(Roddy MacDowall, James - Daly). 
Almost $9,100. Previous week, $11,- 
600 for seven performances. Exited 
Saturday (27) for New York. 

Once More With Feeling, Er¬ 
ianger (C-T) (1st wk) ($5.50-$4.50; 
1,884; $42,000) (Joseph Cotten, 
Arlene Francis). Opened Sept 22 
to one favorable review (Murdock, 
Inquirer), one so-so (Schier, Bulle¬ 
tin) and one pan (Gaghan, News); 
over $32,500. Previous week t $26,- 
000 for five performances at the 
Shubert, New Haven.. Exits next 
Saturday (4) for Boston. 

Swim In the Sea, Walnut (D-T) 
(2d wk) ($4.80; 1,340; $30,000) (Fay 
Bainter), Almost $20,600. Previous 
week, $21,400. Folded Saturday 
(27). 

World of Susie Wong, Forrest 
(D-T) (1st wk) ($5A0-$4.80; 1,760; 
$42,000). Opened Sept 23 to one 
affirmative notice (Murdock, In¬ 
quirer) and two pans (Gaghan, 
News; Schier, Bulletin); almost 
$33,300 for seven performances on 
guild subscription. Previous week, 
$44,500 at tne Shubert. Boston. 
Exits next Saturday (4) for New 
York. 

SAN FRANCISCO j 

! Marriage-Go-Reund, Alcazar 
(C-T). (1st wk) ($5.50; 1,147; 

$38,000) (Charles Boyer,-Claudette 
Colbert). Opened last Saturday 
(27) to two favorable reviews (Mor- : 
ton. Examiner: Hall, Call-Biilletin), 
two inconclusive* (Knickerbocker, 
Chronicle; Hodel, News) and one 
unfavorable (Cone,* Oakland, Trib¬ 
une); almost $14^00 for opening 
nightandtwo previews. Exits Oct. 
11 for Philadelphia. 

Old Vic, Curtan (Rep-RS) (2d 
wk) ($*$5.50: 1,758; $56,000). 

About $49,500 lor ^Twelfth Night.”*. 
Previous week, $35,000 for “Ham¬ 
let.”:. Mts next Saturday (4) for 
Los Angeles. 

TORONTO 

Shakespeare's Ages - af Man, 
Royal Alexandra CD-RS) ($443.50; 
1,525; $29,000) (John Gielgud). 
Over $17,200. Previous week, 
$6,600 toe * one-nlghter at the 
Shakespeare Festival Theatre, 
Stratford, Ont Exited Saturday 
(27) for one-nlghter tour. 

WASHINGTON 

Girls in 599, National (C-T) (2d 
wk) ($4.95-$r,40; 1,677; $36,000) 
(Peggy Wood, Imogehe Cota). Over 
$36,800 on Guild subscription. Pre¬ 
vious week, $33,900. Exited Satur¬ 
day (27) for Philadelphia. 

WILMINGTON 

Man in ike Dog Suit, Playhouse 
(C-T). ($5.40; W (Jessica Tandy, 
Hume Cronyn). Over. $11,500 for 
five performances on Guild sub¬ 
scription.. Exited, Saturday (27) for 
'Washington. 

SPLIT-WEEK 

Auntie Marne (C-RS) Sylvia Sid¬ 
ney). Over $39,700 for seven per¬ 
formances as follows: two, Suhday- 
Monday (21-22), Center, Norfolk, 
Va.; one, Wednesday (24), Munici¬ 
pal Aud., Spartanburg, S. C.; one, 
Thursday (25), Township Aud., 
Columbia, S. C.; one, Friday (26), 
Roy, Columbus, Ga., and two, Sat¬ 
urday (27), Lanier High School, 
Montgomery, Ala. Previous week, 
$49,000 on a seven-performance 
split. 


Medea 

San Francisco, Sept, 13. 

San Francisco Opera Co. presentation 
of three-act opera hy Luigi Cherubini, 
libretto by F. B. Hoffman, after Euripides; 
staged hy Paul Hager; conductor, Jean 
Foumet; settings, Waldemar Jphansen; 
chorus director.. Gianni Lazzari; choreog¬ 
rapher, Eugene' Loring. Features Hleen 
Farrell, Sylri* -Stahlman, Richard Lewis, 
Giuseppe Modest!. Claramae Turner. At 
Sail Francisco Opera House, Sept. 12, 
'58; $12.50 top.- 5 ' 

Creon ...Giuseppe Modesti. 

Glauce .. .Sylvia Stahlman 

Jason .. Richard Lewis 

Medea Eileen FarreU 

Nerij .........i.. Claramae Turner 

Captain of Gvard.....-Harold Enns 

First Handmaiden.. ..Joan Marie Moynagh 

Second Handmaiden.. ■ Margot Blum 

Children. .Bernard Pomeroy, Philiy Kelsey 

Wbf the Frisco Opera chose to 
open its 36th season with this 161- 
year-old opera, never before per¬ 
formed in the U. S., Is something 
of a mystery. The only apparent 
answer is Eileen Farrell, a fine so¬ 
prano. As the curtain-raiser to an 
opera season, however, this curi¬ 
ously static work in the tradition 
of the 16th Century is unsatisfying. 

The story is clean and simple, 
following the classic Greek pat¬ 
tern. Jason throws over his wife, 
Medea, for Glauce, daughter of 
Creon, King of Corinth. Medea 
gains her revenge by poisoning 
Glauce and murdering her own 
two sons by Jason, and in the 
process goes mad. Even the murky 
Italian libretto of F. B. Hoffman 
can’t obscure this plot 

Cherubini’s music, resembling 
the immature Mozart in many 
places and in a few spots rising to 
the standard of "The Magic Flute,” 
carries the' story nicely, though it 
tends to be a tnfle placid at times. 
Conductor Jean Foumet does not 
extract all the possible fire he 
could from the music and seems 
content to emphasize the mnsic’s 
grace rather than its sonorities. 

But the opera's major disap¬ 
pointment IT Paul Hager’s tedious 
direction and production, a tedium 
which settled, on the opening-night 
audience ami^never really moved 
this audlence off its hands despite 
generous Individual applause for 
Miss Farrell and Sylvia Stahlman, 

! (as Glauqel/., ■ 

. Choreographer Eugene Loring 
has inserted a couple of extra¬ 
simple, languid ballet steps and 
then given up. Waldemar Johan¬ 
sen's settings reinforce the static 
quality with huge, Germanic 
pillars, platforms. and dim pastel 
lights. Goldstein 8c Co. has cos¬ 
tumed the corps and chorus in 
what look like pastel nightgowns 
and include a few odd touches, like 
putting Medea’s handmaiden, Neris 
(Claramae Turner), who has one 
big second act contralto aria, in a 
brown monk’s habit and giving the 
male supernumeraries English 
Beefeaters' spears to carry. 

The effect is a series of bloodless 
tableaux—except for the music 
and Hi# singing of some principals. 

Richard lewis, as Jason, proves 
a rather- hoarse tenor at first, but 
settles down and Giuseppe Modesti, 
making his American debut as 
Creon, has a pleasant basso which 
just lacks the power and force to 
be heard In *a big house. 

. Kurt Herbert Adler, the Frisco 
Opera’s general director, deserves 
a nod for trying to introduce new 
works into the repertoire but, 
in this case, it’s evident why 
“Medea’? hasn’t been produced in 
the U. S. before—itV-better in 
concert version. It might, in- 
cidentally^make a fine production 
for NBC-TV’s opera series, where 
it wouldn’t have to he spread over 
a vast stage. , # Stef. 

Mirier k the Cathedral 

Aaiirt State Mode Festival, Inc. prea- 
txtation of 1 tragedy in two act* 

and an lnterfnoc, based on the play by 
Thomas leering c XMot; music, Udebrando 
Pizsettl; Italian version of hook, Moa- 
signor Alberts CaatelH. Conductor, La silo 
Hsian; assistant, Millard Altman; stage 


Holliday $51,100, 'Darling' $38,700, 
‘Campobello’ $34,800, Lunts $29,400 


Firsc uum .. 

Hay Utica on Rentals. eSISl 


Utica, N.Y., Sept. 30. ! 

"Music With Mary Martin” will 
play the 2,900-seat Stanley in 
Utica, Oct. 8, ai one of several 
traveling shows to be seen at the- 
first-run film house this season. 
A two-day engagement of “Li’l Ab¬ 
ner” in early December, and an 
English rock 'n* roll show, in Oc¬ 
tober, have also been set. 

The legits are playing on rental 
deals. 


ager. Gary XuJjhher; orchestra. Symphony 
of the- Air; Boy's choir from the Little 
Church Around the Corner, Stuart * Gard¬ 
ner, organist and choir master. At Car¬ 
negie HalL N.Y., Sept. 1T> '38; S7 top. 
Axchbtohop..........Nicola Roaei-Lemeai 

First CorUea ..Martina Arroyo 

• Second Corifea ..Margery Mayer 

Herald ... Hugh Thompson 

Krst Priest .. Jerome Heller 

Second Priest.. Philip Macro 

Third Priest ..Roy Leonard 

First Tempter... Giulln Gazi 

Second Tempter...Calvin Marsh 

Third Tempter .. Michael Bondon 

Fourth Tempter.Marley Meredith 

First Knight.John Druary 

Second Knight ..... Calvin Marsh 

Third Knight ..Michael Bondon 

FourfhKnUht.Marley Meredith 

Chorug of the Women of Canterbury 
Chorus of the Priests 

Ildebrando Pizzetti’s musical 
adaptation of T. S. Eliot's “Murder 
in the Cathedral” is an interesting 
musical event 

On the basis of its reception In 
Its world jpreem last March at La 
Scala, Milan,, it has been called 
‘^notable,” and that may be true, 
too. It tends to be a difficult work, 
however, that does not. enhance 
1 (Continued on page 66) 


Louisville Theatre Train 
Capacity, Doing Encore 

Louisville, Sept. 30. 

Number 24 -of the Louisville 
Theatre Trains to leave*Louisville 
Sunday Oct. 19, returning Oct. 25, 
has been entirely sold out, Boyd 
Martin, Courier-Journal critic and 
sponsor of the train, had a wait¬ 
ing list week? before bis deadline. 
Sept. 20. He’s now making plans 
for a December train that is to 
leave Dec. 7 and return Dec. 13. 
Both trains go to New York. 

Martin’s group now has reserved 
seats for several attractions, which 
have not opened, but which are 
potential hits, Deadline for reser¬ 
vations on the December train is 
Nov. 10. 

/Candide' Record $8,157 
la Bocks County Close; 
‘Crocus’ Sock $9,800, Chi 

The Bucks County Playhouse, 
New Hope., and the Drury Lane 
Theatre, Chicago, registered sock 
business last Week with respective 
presentations of a concert version 
qf- *“Candide” and “Autumn 
Crocus,” with. Margaret Truman. 

“Candide,” the windup bill at 
Mike Ellis* 432-seat Playhouse, 
broke the house Tecord with a 
gross of $8,157 for eight perform¬ 
ances. Another $1,002 was taken 
in for an extra closing perform¬ 
ance last Sunday (28). The New 
; Hope booking at a $2.50 top was a 
break-in for the upcoming one- 
niter tour of the Lester Osterman- 
Hillard Elkins production. 

. “Crocus” in Its second week at 
the 485-seat Drury had another 
capacity round with the take hit¬ 
ting nearly $9,800. The previous 
week’s gross was $9,600, which was 
sellout less press cuffolas. The 
show, which is scaled to $3.50 top, 
continues this frame. 

Touriag Shows 

(Sept. 29-Oct. 12) 

■ Auntie Mam* . (Ere Arden)—Biltmore, 
LA.. (28-i); Ctoary, SF. <1-11). 

Auntie Mmm (Conetance Bennett)— 
Erianger, Chi (continue! indefinitely). 

Auntie Memo (Sylvia Sidney)—Alumni, 
KnexriUe, Team.- <20); Tower, .Atlanta 
004 )i Tcmpla. Birmingham <S$); KS^ 
Tuecalecm. Ala <t); Tenaeuee, 1 NeahyiDe 
U0-11). 

Can Caw (Genevieve)— Shubert, Det. 

ooux 

w Caa<M^ Iftric, Malta Ol); CongUtutle* 

* Per (tryout) (Judith Ahdenon). 
—Playhouae, Wilmington d-4); Forreat, 
Fhilly (8-11). 

Crazy Octeher (tryput) (Tallulah Bank- 
head)—Shubert, Near Haven (8-11). 

Diary of Anne Frank (Frahda Lederer) 
—E. C. Glam ELS, Lynchburg; Va. (28); 
Xeith-Albee. Huntington, W. Va. OQ); 
Victory, Dayton CD; Indiana 1J.. Blooming¬ 
ton (2); Paramount, Toledo (3-C; OLaugh- 
lin. South Bend (5); Orpheum, Springfirid. 
JU. (6); KRNT, Dea Moines (•); Mute HalL - 

K. C. (8-11). 

Drink H Me Only (tryout)—Wilbur. Bos¬ 
ton (28-4, move to. N.Y.) <Reviaw*d in 
VARIETY, Sept. 24. '38X. 

Kdwln Booth (tryout) (Jose Ferfer)— 
Hartford, LJL. <V-1D. 

Olrls In Mt (tryout) (Peggy Wood, Imo¬ 
gens Coca)—Walnut. Philiy (28-11) (Re* 
viewed in VARIETY, Sept. 17, *38). 

OoMllocks (tryout) <D6ta Ameche)— 
Shubert, Boston C28-4, moves to N.YJ 
(Reviewed fa VARIETY, Sept. l<h *58). 

Lfl Abner—Bushnell Aud., Hartford 
(2-4); Nixon, Pitt. (6-11). 

Leek Sack In Anger-- R oyal Alexandra, 
Toronto (28-4); Cass, Dot. (6-11). 

Make a Million (tryout) (Sum Levene) 
—Locust, Philiy (30-11). 

Men In the Dog Suit (tryout) (Jesdct 
.Tandy, Hume Cronyn)—National, Wash, 
08-11). ~ » 

Marrfege-Go-aound (tryout) (Charles 
Boyer, Claudette Colbert)—Alcazar. SJT. 
(28-11). 

Mask and Down (T. C. Jones)—Great 
Norther*. Chi (29-4). 

Music Man Od Co.)—Philharmonic Aud., 

L. A. (29-30); State Fair Music HalL Dallas 
(4-11). 

My Fair Lady (2d Co.)—Shubert, Chi 
(continues Indefinitely). 

Old Vic—Curran, S.F. (29-4); Philhar¬ 
monic And., LA. (6-11). 

One* More With Feeling (tryout) (Joseph 
Cotten, Arlene Francis)—Erianger. Philiy 
(28-4);. Shube rt, Boston (7-11) (Reviewed 
in VARIETY, Sept. 24, '38). 

Patate (tryout) (Tom EwelD—Colonial, 
Boston (1-11). 

Pleasure of His Company (tryout) (Cyril 
Ritchard, Cornelia Otis Skinner, Charlie 
Buggies, Walter Abel)—Shubert, New 
Have* Ot-4); Wilbur, Boston (6-11). 

Romanoff and Juliet (Peter Ustinoff}— 
Cass, Det OBdh Shubert, Ciney (6-11). . 

Shakespeare's Ages of Man (John Giel¬ 
gud)—Queens U., Kingston, Ont. (29); 
Capitol, Ottawa OO); Her Majesty's, Mont¬ 
real (2-4); Memorial Aud., Burlington <5); 
Collage Aud., Syraeuee <6); AuA, Roch¬ 
ester (7); Coming (N.YJ Glass Center 
•>; Chapin Aud^. South Hadley, Mass. (9); 
Saader* Ca mbridge , Maaa. (10-12). 

Theatre MsWeiiil Papulalre—St. Dennis, 
Montreal OS«; (MUL Quebec 08-11). 

Tu n nel ef LovelEddie Bracken)—Au<L, 
Columbus, O. (4); Memorial Au<L, L'ville 
BgfMst M'wkoe »-ll>. 

■ Twu for fhu Suasavr (2d Co.) (Ruth 
Roman, Jeffrey Lynn)—-Ford's, Balto (6-11). 

World of Suzie Wong (tryout)—Forrest, 
Phili y <28 4, moves to N.YJ (Reviewed in 
VARIETY, Sept. 17, *98). 


• Broadway dropped last week 
with the slide affecting all but the 
two steady sellouts, “Music Man” 
and “My Fair Lady.” There wpre 
only 11 shows running. 

The production lineup jumps to 
13 this frame with the addition of 
“Handful of Fire” tonight (Wed.) 
and “Touch of the Poet” tomorrow. 

| Estimates for Last Week 
r Keys: C (Comedy), D (Drama), 
CD (Comedy-Drama), R (Revue), 
MC (Musical-Comedy), MD (Musi¬ 
cal-Drama), O (Opera),.OP (Op¬ 
eretta), Rep (Repertory). 

Other parenthetic designations 
refer, respectively, to weeks played, 
number of performances through 
last Saturday, top prices (where 
two prices are given, the higher is 
for Friday-Saturday nights and the 
lower for weeknights), number 
of septs, capacity gross and stars. 
Price includes 10% Federal and 
5% City tax, but grosses are net 
i.e., exclusive of taxes. 

Bells Are Ringing, Shubert (MC) 
(93d wk; 740 p) ($8.05; 1,453; $58,- 
101) (Judy Holliday). Over $51,100. 
Previous week, $52,800. 

Dark at the Top of the Stairs, 
Music Box (D) (43d wk; 340 p) 
($5.75-$6.90; 1,010; $33,000). Over 
$21,200. Previous week, $23,100. 

Jamaica, Imperial (MC) (42d wk; 
332 p) ($8.35; 1,427; $63,000) (Lena 
Horne, Ricardo Montalban). Near¬ 
ly $41,000. Previous week, $42,300. 

Look Homeward, Angel, Barry¬ 
more (D) (44th wk; 348 p) ($6.90; 
1,076; $40,716) (Miriam Hopkins). 
Over $23,000. Previous week, 
$24,000. 

Music Man, Majestic (MC) (41st 
wk; 324 p) ($8.05; 1,626; $68,358) 
(Robert Preston). Another $69,400. 

My Fair Lady, Hellinger (MC) 
(133d Wk; 1,059 p) ($8.05; 1,551; 
$68,210). Steady at $69,400. 

Say Dariin*. ANTA (MD) (26th 
wk; 204 p) ($7.50; 1,185; $50,460) 
(David Wayne). Over $38,700. Pre¬ 
vious week, $39,900. 

Sunrise rt Campobello, Cart (D) 
(35th wk; 276 p) ($6.90; 1,155; $37,- 
500) (Ralph Bellamy). Nearly $34,- 
800. Previous week, $36,600. 

Two for the Seesaw, Booth <CD> 
(37th wk; 292 p) ($6-90; 780; $31> 
706) (Dana Andrews). Over $28,- 
800. Previous week, $29,300. 

Visit, Morosco (D) (15th wk; 117 
P) ($6.90; 946; $37,500) (Alfred 
Lunt, Lynn Fontanne). Over $20,- 
400. Previous week, $30,400. 

West Side Story, Winter Garden 
(MD) (53d wk; 420 p) ($8.05; 1,404; 
$63,203). Almost $43,600. Previous 
week, $47^00. 

Opening This Week 

Handfnl of F|re, Beck (D) ($5.75- 
$6,90; 1,280; $43,000) (Roddy 

McDowall, Jaines Daly). David 
Susskind & Playwrights Co. pres¬ 
entation of a play by N. Richard 
Nash. Opens tonight (Wed.). 

Tench ef the' Poet, Hayes TO 
< 07 . 50 ; 1,130; $43,067) (Helen 

Hayes, Eric Portman, Betty Field, 
Kim Stanley). Producers Theafrt 
presentation of Robert Whitehead’g 
production of a play* by Eugene 
O’Neill. Opens tomorrow night 
(Thurs.). 

Off-Eroadway Shows 

American Mime, Orpheum (0- 
23-58); closes Oct 11. 

Blood Wedding, Actors Play¬ 
house (3-31-58). 

Boy Friend, Cherry Lane (1-25- 
58), 

Children of Darkness, Circle In 
the Square (2-28-58). 

Craeihle, Martinique (3-11-58). 

Heloise, Gate (9-24-58). 

Ionesco Plays, Sullivan St. (6- 
3-58). 

Jackknife, Royal (9-22-58). 

Lula, 4th St (9-29-58). 

Playboy of the Western World, 
Tara (5-8-58). 

Threepenny Opera, deLys (9-20- 
55). 

Ulysses, Rooftop (6-5-58). 

Closed Last Week 

Comic Strip, Barblzon Plaza 
(5-14-58); closed last Sunday (28). 

Egg & I, Jan Hus (9-10-58); closed 
last Sunday (28). 

Guests of Nation, Marquee (6- 
26-58); closed last Sunday (28). 

Yoany Provincials, Cricket (0- 
18-58); closed last Sunday (28). 

Arnold Goodman, general man¬ 
ager for attorney David Marshall 
Holtsmann of the Cape Cod Melody 
Tent, Hyannii, Mass., and the 
South Shore Music Circus, Cohas- 
set. Mass., has joined Boltzmann, 
as a taw assistant in the firm of 
Holtzmann & Boltzmann. Goodman 
is completing law studies at Ford- 
ham U. 

























We&esdajs. October I t 1958 


Marie Dora* the. former l e git- film, 
actress, who died in 1*956, left $90,- 
000 to the Actors. Fond 1 of America. 

“Praise’ Me to the Skier," Irene 
Kampfc musical' adaptation of her 
play, “The Youuff Sfrangers.^is 
planked for Broadway production 
nextapriar by EawrenceCnra, Bari 
Ho wank ha* been signed to-* com¬ 
pose the music. 

A touring production of “An In-, 
spector* Calls’’ is planned for this 
season, by the Theatre Guild, In 
associatioh with Laurence Feld¬ 
man. The cast will probably be 
headed by the same performers; 
who toured the strarwhat circuit 
during th4* sttiftmer in a package 
edition of the play. They’re Cadcte 
Hardwfcfce, BWaille Cooper, Mary 
Scott and Borne Gadd. 

Maurine. Zolotow’s “The Mar¬ 
riage Equation” has been acquired 
for Broadway production by Irl 
Mowery and Harris Mastenon, 

“Things to* Remember," a musi¬ 
cal about Hans Christian Ander¬ 
son,. by Clyde.North, and Mia. 
Carroll, has been announced for 
production, by C. Scott Gongwer, 
Lisa EUlman and Maude Fractal 

Marjorie Steele, actrese-wffeoF 
producer-theatre owner Hunting- 
ton Mmrlf O t d, is branching out: into 
the managerial field. She and 
scenic designer Brit Edwards are 
planning: m Broadway produetiaU'uf 
Robert Thole’s “Soito** to Bywi- 
tiura,” with Gladys Cooper as star, . 

“Like Wonderful’* which Boned. 
Muller expanded from a television 
play„. “Love Me to Pieces;” is 
planned for Broadway production 
by the Playwright* Go* and Mark 
MersbUj, casting, director for CBS. 

Herman Shumltu will direct 
“Tall Story,” which Emmett Rogers 
and Robert Weiner hare scheduled 
for a Jan. 22 Broadway opening. ' 

Burf Irerfta* dropped hi* option 
on the- Hal Lewh^CHffbr# Sage 
play, “Joshua Beane and Gkxfc” 

WHffom Merchant's “Faster: 
Faster” is plumed fbr Broadway- 
production next January by Car¬ 
men Casalbou 

British director Fete* Glenrille 
: has optioned, Peter Shaffer’* play, 
“The Hunt of the Sun.” 

Willard Swire, ANTA’s. executive 
director, goer fat San Francisco late 
this month ta Item a local ANTA 
chapter. 

Sam Liff, production man¬ 
ager of the Briwdway and London 
companies, pf “My FaifcLady*!' wilt 
direct the Australian. edfflott of 
the musical* scheduled ta open 
next Jam 24 at Her. I&Je«fyV 
Th eatre ^ Melbourne, under lb* J. 
C. Wffltanson Theatre* Ltd^ ban¬ 
ner. Robin v Bailey and* > Bunty 


[Turner will head the cast, which 
[will alsd lhclude Richard Walker 
F and Kenneth Laird, 

, Bernard Kopt* “The. Hamlet of 
[Stepney Green,"'which. Toe O’Brien 
and Rhett Cone plan presenting 
next Oct. 2T at the Cricket Thea- 
;tre, Nl Y., win be defected by 
'O’Brien 1 . 

Actor-director H erbert Berghof 
and playwright* Lees Katz: and 
;S«i Stein have been, set as lec¬ 
turers in dramatic arts for the 
1958-59 academic year at Colum¬ 
bia U.„ N, Y. 

! Zvf Geyra is designing the sets, 
and lighting for “Edwin Booth,*’ 1 
' The production staff fbr “Flow- 
! er Drum Seng” include* Salvatore 


#3«fgfr 

Dell’ Isola; musical director; Mau¬ 
rice Winters; Company manager, 
and. James Hanmerstein, product 
.tion stage manager. 

! Marie Jails has scrapped plans 
‘to present Sylvia. Leigh’s “Dark 
[Halo.” on. Broadway this season 
but is. contemplating producing the - 
| play in England next year. 

Jack Youngeraan is designing. 
: the sets for "Deathwatch.” 

Shepard. Trails directing the 
'touring company^cd “Tunnel of 
Love" t 

Tom - Patterseitf^Mfchael Lang- 
ihamv Louis AppfeWum and -Mrs. 
G. S, Hall/' all associated with the 
Stratford <Ont)» Shakespeare Ffes- 
^tival, which Pattmabn founded, are 
[.overseas- ah m Londbn, Paris, Mos- 
[ cow. and Tei Aviy tour, 
r Donald GoldmiUi - head of the 
Shakespearewrights* has taken 


.over a Greenwich Village garage, 
and is converting It Info a 200-seat 
theatre as. a permanent .showcase 
for the group. The initial produc¬ 
tion: of the season will be “King 
.Lear,” to* be staged by PhtH# 
Lawrence. [ / 

‘Ta>ve in. Public,” by John. Cros¬ 
by, radio and television columnist 
of the N. Y. Herald Tribune, has 
been, acquired for Broadway pro¬ 
duction by Alexander H. Cohen, 
Officers elected at the recent 
, annual meeting of the Playwrights 
Co. were Roger L, Stevens, presi¬ 
dent; Victor Samrock, vice presi¬ 
dent, and John C. Taylor 3d, sec¬ 
retary. Re-elected to the board of 
directors were Maxwell Anderson, 
Robert A nd erso n, Elmer Kfce, 
.Stevens- and John F. Wharton. 
[Stevens also announced at the 
meetfcg that ail preferred' and 


LtmOffATC 67 

Class A stock had been retired 
and that the Playwrights was now 
completely owned by its directors 
and* officers. 

“The Golem,” a new pla y by 
Owen Rachleff, based on Jewish 
[lore, is scheduled to preem off- 
Bcuadway Nov. 10 at the new 
Orpheum. Theatre, under the pro¬ 
duction. auspicies of Dorothy OHm 
.and Paul Rickolt. The English- 
‘ language production will be di¬ 
rected by Gene Frankel. 

“Between Seasons,” by Malcolm 
Wells, has been optioned for 
Broadway production by Louis 
<TAlmekla> 

Eleanore Saidenoerg has joined 
iWIfliam Darrid as. co-producer of 
"“The Disenchanted.” 

Jessie* Tandy and Hume Cronyn . 
'celebrated their 16th wedding an¬ 
niversary last Saturday (27). . 


: Vir g mia Vincent has the town talking about her performance 

in "Dead Pigeon”-™™™*" 






"HVfhr 1RILLIANT PERFORMANCE- turned in by star Virginia 
Vincent which bring* this pigeen to life. Her performance; a* 
holed,, is ». r striking; gemi both as the tough wary con and thr 
tender lover.” 

-—Leo Kovxer 

Hollywood Reporter 


11 'Dead Pigeon 1 serve* a noble purpose; IT STARS THE 
VERY TALENTED VIRGINIA VINCENT* Sustaining perfectly 
throughout the play, she makes every movement count, every 
Word important and intelligent, SWS 1$ SUPERB." 

—Geoffrey WARREN 
L A. Timer' 



Drink to-Me 34th St. aNW. 

OoldlloclMr fwtlnluae OGir-MX 
Duxle Won* BramUwrat G8-1438). 

V.N.F. of P*rt* B*way flO-1438). 

Olrta in SM, Belaece (M3M8). __ 

Make a. Mil Hen, Playhouae U0-1S-B8T. 
•nor Mere VfM WeRnp NeW OMMOT; 
Rleamm aS KMCo^ I angwre (MML 
Ratal* JUUae os-aoan., 

Ma rita — Oe Woimtf, Ply m o u th OMW. 
Man At -le* -Son, Coroxet 410300(1... 
Crazy October,.Alvin (11-3-58). 
geene-PBleS Caldap OIhMBL 
CowaaXUa*An>T>a—Anr (H33BL , 
Rtumr Ob Mar TVtiTv, lhiy*J*trt-IT38?; 
Shadow of Gunman, BUou (11-18-58), 
Mwln Oeottfc. MUr. 9K, CLT-MOI), 

Mower Drum* Sum, St. Janme CltXT-3m 
Mazabo, Ly cen. CU-MB). 

Celd wind S warm, Soroeeo d»430. 
OW Vic, B’way (12-058). 

A B., ANTA (12-11-58). 

Wtieop-Up, Shubtrt' (12-1839, 

Dadhead, 46th St. (2-5-59). 

Rtrst Impressions, Alvin (£-12-50)!; 

OFF-BROAD WAY 

Ivanov, Reada ttR-frOO. 

Daethwatch, Theatre East (10-9-58). 

Leok Back In Anger, 41st St, 00-1138). 
Oelden Six, York (10-13-58). 
Mid-Nightmare, Palm^ Gardens OaiMi). 
Family Reunion, Phoenix 0030aBV 
kaurents Series, Sheridan Sq. (10-2338): 
OMphey Green. Cricket CTO-2738); 
Diversions, Downtown (11-5-58). 

Go Itin, Orpheum (11-1038). 

Salad Days, Barbizon-Plaza (11-11-58). 

C iwj-A- D ea d i a^ Cacaegi* Ol-U-58).- 

Man Who Never Died, Jan Hus (11-19-58). 


VIRGINIA. VINCENT in “Dead Pigeon” 

wJ 4&»efWi by LEHARD KAH.TOR • flAYIRS' RM» SAUERY THEATRE. El 11 SoMa H«k< r,A. Ot 4-04S4 

MOTIOR nCTORES 

(T» Be Meosedj 

Top Feotared fa 

Represen+attonr Alotr Mexoider Agaqf *'f WANT TO LIVE” 


Represen+attonr Alor Ateroader Agency 
Public Relations: Artfcar Eddy 


UMITEff ENGAGEMENT 
HOLLYWOOD; CALIFORNIA 


"NEVER STEAL ANYTHING 
SMALL" 

"BLACKORCHID" 



















































68 


LEOHDIATB 


Wednesday, October 1, 1958 ' 


P^rIET? 






Wednesday, October I, 1958 


PTGSIBfr 


LITERATI 


69 



Crosschecked Mike Todd Bio* . 

Upcoming “Nine Lives of Mi¬ 
chael Todd," by the late Art Cohn, 
who crashed in the same plane 
accident with the producer, was 
assiduously checked and cross¬ 
checked by Random House, says 
prexy Bennett Cerf* Theatrical at¬ 
torney Arnold Grant, who proceed¬ 
ed against Todd; Chicago indus¬ 
trialist Col. Henry . Crown, who 
loaned millions to Todd; Marlene 
Dietrich, and others, were among 
those who were carefully checked 
on' some of the facts in the book. 

Marta - Cohn wrote the epilogue 
to “Nine Lives," completing her 
late husband’s biog of the show¬ 
man which took, two years’ work. 


. Howell-Mark Hanna Merger 

Molly Binion, sole beneficiary of 
the late literary agent Mark 
Hanna’s estate •— business, apart¬ 
ment, etc.—has merged with the 
Miriam Howell agency. She is car¬ 


rying on the Hanna business which, 
in effect, has been her dual re¬ 
sponsibility for the 24 years she 
was associated with the literary 
and talent agent who died last 
month at 59. 

Miss Binion decided she could 
continue better servicing the writ¬ 
ers in the Hanna stable by hooking 
up with an established agency, in¬ 
stead of adding new manpower 
and going it alone. 


Dell's Hot One-Shots 

Dell Publishing “Liz & Mike, 
25c one-shot, which got on the 
newsstands a month after the 
showman’s fatal plane crash last 
spring, has gone back to press 
twice, with 700,000 copies sold to 
date. A serious one-shotter, “1,000 
Hints for Teens,” did so well 
(500,000 copies) that the publisher 
is bringing it out as a quarterly 
starting next February. Richard L. 
Williams* editorial director of 


As timely as the 
headlines-an authentic, 
explosive novel 
about the meteoric 
rise (and fall) of a 

big-money TV Quiz show 



Advertised as a game of skill, an honest contest 
of wits, it was .the highest-rating show on any 
network. Week after week, audiences gasped at 
the phenomenal-knowledge displayed by ordi¬ 
nary people, waited in suspense while the large 
money prizes were handed out... 

But the men behind the scenes took another 
-riew. They controlled the questions, the con¬ 
testants} die timing. To them it was just another 
Job: to build a TV show that would hit die top 
ten fast. So Roger Norden, account executive at 
one of the old-line advertising agencies, gave 
diem Put N’Take—the biggest TV quiz ever 
.devised, based on die sound principle that some 
of the "peons" have a lot of facts stuffed in thetr 
heads — and every "hick” is money mad. 

“lob Foramen sitings along with his character# 
Hie same as a ventriloquist uses a dummy to say 
many things that need saying but which it Isn’t 
politic for ah important man in the .TV rat race 
te say with his own mouth. It’s a fun book and d 
groat deal of the fun Is between the lines, - 

~HY GARDNER 

“It’s clairvoyant. It's revealing. It’s even sexy. Go 
. Jo your, nearest bookstore and tell ’em Groucha 
sent youl’’ GROUCHO MARX 

the Hot 

Half Hour 

fyl Ufa*** 1 *-' 

$3.95 at yoiir bookstore Criterion Books* Inc. 


Dell’s special projects, has two 
more due in October: "Brigitte" 
(as in.Bardot) and “Ricky" (as in 
Nelson). 

Mrs. Dorothea Zack Hanle, edi¬ 
tor of Everywoman’s until it was 
purchased by Family Circle, has 
Joined Dell as women’s editor and 
will edit the “Dell 1,000 Hints" 
quarterly, plus three other annual 
mags: “1,000 Ideas for Christmas,” 
“1,000-Recipe Cookbook” and “Dell 
Barbecue Cookbook.” Mrs. Jean 
Rainer is another new staffer, as 
entertainment -sfcditor of Screen 
Album and DelkQuarterly now in 
its 20th year; oatjid the annuals, 
Hollywood Romances, Who’s Who 
In Hollywood, =$bo's Who In TV 
and Radio, Modeiu. Screen’s Holly¬ 
wood Yearbook,. Hollywood Life 
Stories. Mrs. Ramer is ex-manag¬ 
ing editor of Photoplay. 

Robert Markel, former ed of 
Picture Week, has joined Dell as 
sports editor and will supervise 
the Baseball- Annual,. Baseball 
Stars, Who’s Who in the Big 
Leagues, Stanley Woodward’s 
Football Annual and Dell Basket¬ 
ball Annual. 


Bochwald’s Literary Prize 

Art Buchwald, columnist for the 
Paris edition of the N.Y. Herald 
Tribune, won the annual “good, 
humor” literary prize here for his 
first novel, now out in French, “A 
Gift From the Boys.” Galled the 
Prix De La Bonne Humeur, the 
remuneration came to $475. 

This is Buchwald's ‘first novel, 
though collections of his columns 
have been published. Yearly award 
is handed out for the wittiest work, 
and Buchwald commented it was 
a serious thing getting a humor 
prize. Book will he made into a 
pic. in Italy this summer by Stanley 
Donen. It is about a deported Yank 
gangster who gets a going-away 
gift of a heady chorine. 

Buchwald won the prize unani¬ 
mously from a jury which included 
Marcel Pagnol and the originator 
oE the prize, DOSothy Gould.- 


Job Ain’t Steady 

After 29 years; John A, Rose, 
Denver correspondent for Variety, 
has resigned to-move his family 
to Yuma, Oolfc, some 142 miles 
from the state capital. 

Marjorie Barrett, on the Rocky 
Mountain News, is taking over from 
Rose. She’s daughter of the 
novelist, William E. Barrett long a 
Denver resident. 


Ustinov’s HCL 

Peter Ustinov’s high cost of lit¬ 
erature deal with Atlantic Monthly 
and -Little, Brown calls for a 
$21,500 package deal for seven 
brief articles which will rim.first 
in the magazine and will be com¬ 
piled in book form by the LB pub¬ 
lishing house. Actor will write on 
anything he' chooses. 

Carlton Cole set the deaL 


Redgrave’s ’Mask Or Face’ 

That accomplished British actor, 
Michael Redgrave, has written an 
erudite but far from egghead book 
the actor’s craft, “Mask Or 
Face” (Heinemann; $2.50). Based 
mainly on lectures he has given 
Redgrave discusses “The Method,” 
the difference between stage and 
film acting, Shakespearian roles, 
his work as a stage director, and 
various other aspects of his job. 

This is no book of theatrical 
chitchat It provides an absorbing 
glimpse into what makes a'serious 
actor tick and is written with grace 
and insight. Lavishly illustrated 
with scenes from his various plays 
and films this is not only an excel¬ 
lent Redgrave souvenir for all his 
fans, but a worthwhile addition to 
any library beigg. built up by a 
theatre enthusiast/ Rich. 


ckilfrER 

Religious writer Roland Gam¬ 
mon flies to London on Friday (3) 
to address* the. krmual meeting of 
the* World Codg^eks of Earths. 

Rebecca Bfe&het Publications 
Inc, authorized to conduct a pub¬ 
lishing and printing business id 
Brooklyn, N. Y. - 

Richard G. Hubler authored a 
book about Hollywood which Duell, 
Sloan & Pearce is bringing out in 
January. It’s tagged “The Shat¬ 
tering of the Image.” 

Michael Sean O’Shea, legit p.a., 
begins fifth year as U. S. corre¬ 
spondent for Hie* West Indian Re¬ 
view (Jamaica,' B.W.I.). Publicist- 
scribe reps various B.W.I. accounts 
in Jamaica. . 

Reginald M.' Cleveland, who 
moved to Randolph Center, Vt, 
five years ago when he retired 
from the N<Y. Times, elected presi¬ 
dent of the Greater Vermont Assn. 
He served the Times, as a writer, 
editor and assistant national adver¬ 
tising manager. 

Variety’s Jo Ranson contributes 
a piece on Tin Pan Alley’s attitude 
toward racial and Yfejigious'minori- 
ties Iff the September issue of the 
ADL Bulletin published by the 




! SCULLY’S SCRAPBOOK :: 


+♦♦♦♦♦+♦♦♦♦♦♦♦» By Frank Scully -m 


■+♦♦♦»♦♦»» + * 

Hollywood, Sept. 39. 

The economic bombs that made Hiroshima and Nagasaki out of Lou 
Walters* Cafe de Paris in N.Y. and Herman Hover’s Ciro in L.A. and 
caused many other mortalities across the country, were generally be¬ 
lieved to have been talent-made. Salary demands slugged the niteries 
into oblivion. That’s the coroner’s verdict, anyway. 

But any name performer can tell a different story. Lillian Roth, for 
instance, in “Beyond My Worth.” In the middle of that book she tells 
of the sluggings a performer takes in niteries, and her worst case deals 
with a top hotel in the west. 

How To Lose A Million 

Why an act that would gladly work at the Waldorf for $5,000 a week 
would spurn $15,000 along the Vegas Strip has baffled cafe owners 
who had to curry to this same talent between the two towns. Trying to 
stay in the game while running short of blue chips is not unfamiliar 
to gamblers and running niteries never had the security of running a 
Federal Reserve Bank, 

It's three-handed poker and each one hopes to control the other. 
The entertainer hopes he has the audience eating out of his hand and 
the cafe owner hopes he has the entertainer just where he wants him. 
The paying client hopes he will get more than his money’s worth. When 
they all are in harmony you have a great show. 

But it is the performer’s job, not the manager’s to unlock the hearts 
of an audience. If he does it so well the place is a sellout, he looks for 
,a basic guarantee plus a percentage for the extra biz he has brought in. 
However, good business with a small overhead is a cafe owner’s idea 
of a fair shake. ■ 

When he .finds himself forced to pay more and make less he screams 
the demands of talent are closing his biz. 

Miss Roth details how one works up from the basement, and In her 
case a pretty damp and dismal one, to $1,000 a week and the long haul 
as in-betweener where managers admire a comeback but say a cheap 
act is not for them. 

When she finally arrived at $12,000 a week, even here she was - not 
free from all the problems that go with being one against a machine, 
for a performer m a nitery or a hotel isn't part of a team, or at least 
Is never judged to be such by an audience. 

For “Tomorrow” Read “Today” 

This is why arguments over billing which seem ridiculous and venal 
to outsiders is so important to an act. Miss Roth tells of a booking she 
got while Metro was filming “I’ll Cry Tomorrow." She does not name 
the hotel, and gives the manager the concealing name of Harry Burns. 

Two weeks before her act was to open she got a call from b(m ask¬ 
ing if she would take equal billing with a comedian. It was explained 
it was a new hotel and had booked several big names in the hope of 
strengthening the opening show. 

This would not be such a problem in a night club where they have 
a multiple bill, but hotels cater to single stars, and this is one of the 
nicer reasons for working in the hotels. However, she decided not to be 
difficult and said okay to the split billing. 

When she arrived at the hotel, however, her equal billing had dis¬ 
appeared. She was cut down to half size and dropped out of the ads 
altogether. When she complained, it was explained it was a mistake 
and would be taken care of tomorrow. Next day, no change. So she 
wrote to Mr. Bums saying that she so admired a man who could keep 
his word. 

Mr. Burns Does A Burn 

Walking through the lobby of the hotel some time later, she heard 
a roar from the barbershop.^It was from Mr. Bums, his face contorted 
with rage. _ 

“You,” he shouted, "come in here! How dare you write such a letter?” 

“How dare you yiolate your agreement?" she wanfed to know. 

She held up the morning paper. Her name was not in the ad. He 
slapped the paper out of her hand and thundered, “Sit down!" 

The upshot of the interview was he told her he’d fix her, he’d give 
her only 12 minutes on the show, “Use one more minute and I’ll have 
you blacked put” For an act that ran 35 minutes, 12 minutes Was « 
turning a trout into sardine. 

Efforts to contact her union official were in vain, and not surpris¬ 
ing, because he was working for the same Mr. Bums on the side. He 
was handling Bums' chorus line—at least he was until his union fired 

him. 

Seed Of ’Get Tou*fc’ Policy 

On every turn the power of Mr, Burns was Evident to the performer. 
She could have quit or she could have fought it out, and she preferred 
to do the latter. After all, she wasn’t there to entertain Mr. Bums, but 
the people who paid Mr. Bums’ .keep as well as her own. She f '* r n * 
through admirably, but there’s no denying thatr such treatment hardens 
a performer in. his. or her dealings with management. 

That many of them will work for $500 a week in a strawhat theatre 
or take a part in a tv show which is gone and forgotten in an hour, but 
will not slice one nickel off their fat fees for a nitery is due to in¬ 
stances like this which may not happen often to one performer, but 
happens at least once to every performer. 

Generally speaking, hotel management and hotel audiences are bet- 
ter behaved than those handling .and attending separate saloons. Even 
different audiences at these places differ, the dinner crowd In a hotel 
being notably more quiet than those who come in for a midnight frolic, 
and, frequently half-crocked, want to perform as welL . 

Mondays Strictly For Blues Singers 

Monday audiences, like, the waiters, orchestra and performers, are 
beat. Friday audiences are family affairs. Saturday crowds are the 
worst for a performer to handle and generally the noisiest Jl hostile 
table can pop up anywhere, any time, but the weekend whooper-uppers 
can almost he guaranteed to be built-in. All these are primarily per¬ 
formers* problems. 

Perfomaers find that big eastern towns like more subtle entertain- 
ment; toe middle west simplicity, and the south more bombastic de¬ 
livery. Everywhere the performer, if liked professionally, doesn’t ne¬ 
cessarily rate social acceptance as well. Perhaps this goes also for man¬ 
agers. 

Bedouin’s' Bonifaces Same End 

According to Lillian Roth, audiences are not what they were in the 
T0 ?2 S $ ?°* S * T ? e Z don,t race from one night spot to another. The un¬ 
settled state of the world has settled them a bit: So they dine more 
quietly and go., home earlier. Biz falls Off and more managers of ni¬ 
teries, like the Arabs of old, quietly fold their tents and folding chairs 
and disappear from toe records of the tax collectors. 

That’s life, and toe performer is only a small part of why It Is so. 


Anti-Defamation League of B'nai 
B’rith. 

The United States Information 
Agency (USIA) is reprinting David 
Dachs’ Saturday - Review article, 
10 Years of the Music Tents,” in 
foreign languages for distribution 
abr oad. : Dacha; special feature 
writer for NANA,.has an upcoming 
profile on Johnny in Com- 

I’pact mag. „ , 

Mac Hyman. authbr of “No Time 
for Sergeants/' has registered as 


a law student in the Walter F. 
George School of Law at Mercer 
University, Macon, Ga. Hyman, a 
natiye of Cordele, Ga., feels that 
study of law will help him in hig 
writing career. He started classes 
Thursday (25) and plans to -com¬ 
mute to classes f?om Cordele to 
Macon, a roundtrip of 135 miles. 
Hyman, 35, has studied at North 
Georgia College, Dahlopega, Duke 
University, Durham, N. C., arid Co¬ 
lumbia University. 




70 


CHATTER 


KBSinr? 


Wednesday, October 1, 195B 


Broadway 

A1 and Dorothy Strelsin Just 
back from Europe. 

Grace and Bill Boyd back to the 
Coast after extensive European 
vacation. 

Kermit Bloomgarden chairman- 
Ing the theatrical division of the 
Muscular Dystrophy Assns. of 
America Inc. 

Harold Sachson, ex-Columbia 
Pictures (Paris), to the Coast for 
huddles with Sol Lesser Produc¬ 
tions as foreign rep. 

It’s Indian summer in N.Y. but 
it's the winter season in Rocke- 
feller Plaza; the* outdoor skating 
pond has just opened. 

Adman Milton Biow back- from 
a London and Paris quickie on 
Government business; he is a spe¬ 
cial business consultant. 

Estelle (Mrs. Michael) Stern, 
wife of the Rome correspondent, 
in with. Gioia Fontana, youngest 
of the famed Italian couture house, 
for a showing at the Plaza Oct* 6. 

Anna Sosenko got the unusual 
billing as “presenter*' of Soocha 
Renay, her new protegee, during 
latter's engagement in Dallas’ 
Adolphus Hotel. Press gave ac¬ 
cent to Miss Sosenko's past associa¬ 
tions with Hildegarde. 

Marv Minoff, the William Mor¬ 
ris agency, flying over on the in¬ 
augural BOAC jet flight next 
week on company business to Lon¬ 
don, Paris and Rome. He’s the 
son of Harry Minoff, partner in 
Leeds, the theatrical clothiers. 

Famed Savoy Ballroom, long a 
Harlem landmark where top bands 
played and the site of many black- 
and-tan shindigs when Harlem was 
in its nite life heyday, under the 
auction block yesterday (Tues.) 
afternoon to make room for a hous¬ 
ing development. 

Illness caused Jules Alberti to 
defer a European trip and also to 
insure attending the Navy League 
dinner scheduled for Oct. 29 at the 
Waldorf when he will be cited for 
the special work the president of 
Endorsements Inc. has done for the 
Navy* 

Two MCA top execs have wed¬ 
dings in their families later this 
year. Board chairman Jules C. 
Stein’s daughter Jean is marry¬ 
ing an attorney in New York and 
Taft Schrebier’s son Toby, with the 
Benton & Bowles agency in N.Y., 
will marry a Coast girl. ; 

Showman Ed (“The Bishop”) 
Lenihan’s daughter, Mary Jane 
Lenihan, commuting from Paris to 
New Haven with her boss, play¬ 
wright Irwin Shaw, whose “Lucy 
Crown” preemed in Paris last week 
and whose “Patate” (adaptation 
from the French of Marcel Ar- 
chard) is breaking-in currently in 
New Haven. 

French haut couture is getting 
into the travel biz act and, like the 
showplanes, now has agreed to tie 
in with the airlines so that Euro¬ 
pean “package tour” patrons will 
also see the de luxe fashion shows. 
Heretofore they were highly re¬ 
stricted to the press and the 7th 
Ave. trade. Now it’s a three-way 
deal: cuisine, culture and couture. 

Travel agency people, tourist 
bureaus, hoteliers, admen, restau¬ 
rateurs et al. turned up Monday 
evening for a cocktailery-buffet 
unveiling of the new Hotel Astor 
grand ballroom; facelift and decor, 
including new airconditioning, said 
to represent $1,000,000 investment. 
Bill Zeckendorf Jr. hosted the fete. 
Last night (Tues.) the N.Y. Herald 
Tribune Fresh Air Fund’s ball 
was the official inangural event. 


’Annual local University series 
to comprise Roberta Peters, Dan¬ 
ish National Orchestra, Jan Peerce, 
Alexander Brailowsky, Arthur 
Rubenstein, Igor Besrodini and 
Canadian National Ballet for sea¬ 
son ticket, $16 top. 

Because of medical science ad¬ 
vances, circus and carnival side¬ 
show freak shows on way out, 
attractions becoming increasingly 
more difficult to obtain, according 
to R. E. Best, here with his Min¬ 
nesota State Fair midway collec¬ 
tion. 


Zurich 

By George Mezoefl 

(32, Florastrasse; 34-70-32) 

Stadttheatre Basle’s initial 
straight play this season will be 
Dylan Thomas’ “Under Mllir 
Wood.” 

Smallseater Komoedie Basle has 
the initial production in Switzer¬ 
land of Peter Ustinov’s “Romano 
and Juliet.” 

“Bridge on River Kwai” (Col) is 
racking up smash grosses at Met- 
ropol, Berne; Rex, Lausanne, and 
ApoRo, Lucerne. 

"South Pacific” (20th> set at the 
1.300-seat Apollo here in October. 
I> ' -ill be the first pic shown m 
T^'d-AO in th‘s country. 

ocsntly formed Edinburgh In¬ 
ternational Ballet making its Swiss, 


bow at Stadttheatre. SolGist* in¬ 
clude Marjorie Tallcbief and 
George Skibine. * 

Schauspielhaus has the German- 
language preem of John Osborne's 
early opus, “Epitaph for George 
Dillon,” Sept. 25. Leopold Lindt- 
berg is directing. 

A “Festival della Canzone Ital- 
iana” is skedded at Kongresshaus, 
Sept. 27, patterned after the San 
Remo Festival whose last Nr, 1 
winner was “Nel Blu Dipinto Di 
Blu.” 

Dr. Oskar Waelterlin, managing 
director of the Schauspielhaus, was 
made a Knight of the Legion of 
Honor by the President of France, 
on occasion of 20th annl of his 
management. 

Unusually high number of five 
foreign legit outfits with name 
players will appear at Schauspiel¬ 
haus during Oct.-Nov. Plays include 
Moliere’s “Misanthrope,” G. B. 
Shaw’s “Candida,” Jean Anouilh’s 
“Waltz of the Toreadors,” Arthur 
Schnitzler’s “Liebelei” and Paul 
Eaynal’s “Napoleon Unique.” 


Chicago 

(Delaware 7-4984) 

Della Reese toplining Roberts 
Show Club. 

Municipal Opera Co. gave sin¬ 
gleton performance of “Tosca” at 
Eighth St. Theatre. 

Comic Frankie Scott repeating 
at the Hollywood, and Stu Allen 
berthed at Mangam’s Chateau. 

Arnie Matanky, erstwhile CBS 
news writer, named prez of Infor¬ 
mation Consultants; new p.r. firm. 

Jimmie Komack etched four 
sides for Chess Records during hiS 
recent two week stand at Mr. 
Kelly’s. 

Studs Terkel emceeing folk 
concert of Josh White, Oscar 
Brand, Jean Ritchie and Eve Lill 
at Orchestra Hall. 

Alan Carr and Jack Tourville, 
new lessees of Civic Theatre, off 
to New York to huddle with Julius 
M onk re a new revue. 

VIP, southside nitery due to 
have opened a week ago, went 
kaput prenatally, voiding contract 
of its opening act, Barbara Carroll 
Trio. 

Danny Thomas and spouse in 
over past weekend to headline a 
benefit for St. Jude’s Hospital at 
Aid for Leukemia Stricken Ameri¬ 
can Children convention. 


, Rome 

By Robert F. Hawkins 

(Stampa Estera ; 675-906) 

Hany MaeMahan is U.S. jury 
member at current Venice Festi¬ 
val of Publicity Films. 

Luciana Paoluzzi, renamed Pa- 
luzzi in her first pic, now contem¬ 
plating another switch to either 
Luciana Palu, Pal, or Lovello. 

Dawn Addams heads to Cam- 
bodgia for her next film, “Le Roi 
Lepreux”, directed by Jean Sacha. 
Dany Carrel, Felix Marten among 
others in cast. 

Rossana Rory back in Italian pix 
with costarring role in new pic 
version of Stevenson’s “The Black 
Arrow”, now called “Captain 
Fire,” with Lex Barker in title 
role. 

RAI-TV planning to join cele¬ 
bration commemorating Eleonora 
Duse with special memorial pro¬ 
gram on which famed actors will 
introduce various parts of flash¬ 
back memorial. 

In-and-out of Rome: Linda 
Christian, Frank M.* Folsom, Chelo 
Alonso, Stella Adler, Ladislao Vaj- 
da, Raymond Hakim, Richard 
Thorpe, Rene Clement, and Vit¬ 
torio Gassmann. 

Lex Barker to follow up his 
"Captain Fire” stairer here with 
“The Avenger”, produced by 
Athena Cinematografica. Anna 
Maria Ferrero and Massimo Serato 
appear with him. 

Four Yank items in competition 
for annual radio-tv “Italia Prize” 
sponsored by RAI-TV, the Italo 
telenetwork. Twenty other coun¬ 
tries also leaped in international 
race for broadcasting honors. 

Marlon Brando being paged as 
possible suitor of Gina LollObrigi- 
da -in her upcoming “Madame 
Sans-Gene”, which she’ll do after 
“Solomon and Sheba” and “The 
Last Judgment,” last-named to be 
directed by Vittorio DeSica this 
fall. 

Richard Basehart’s next is “Les 
Ambitieux,” with location work in 
Tahiti. His wife, Valentina Cor- 
tese, stars in “Le Ragazze Chia- 
cherate” under direction of An¬ 
tonio Pietrangeli, after which she 
returns to stage with Italo version 
of “Two for the Seesaw.” 

Just back from role in “The 
Miracle” on the Coast Anita Ek- 
berg slated to fly to Belgrade soon 
for second unit work on “The 
Sign of Rome”, to* be directed by 
Riccardo Freda: Georges Mar- 
chal, Jacques Sernas, Lore 11a 
DeLica also in pic produced by 
Glomer of Rome and Germany’s 
Bavaria Filmkunst. 


London 

(COVent Garden 1035/6/7) 

Diana Decker began five weeks’ 
cabaret season at the Society. 

John Farrow in from Spain for 
dubbing and scoring on “John Paul 
Jones.” 

‘The Wind Cannot Read” is due 
to play a return date at Odeon, 
Leicester Square, later this month. 

Graham Green completed a new 
comedy, “The Complaisant Lover,” 
which is due for an early West 
End presentation.. 

Variety Club sponsoring preem 
of Daniel M.- Angel’s “The Sheriff 
of Fractured Jaw” to aid the 
Actors’ Orphanage. 

With. the Queen’s permission, 
scenes for current Crazy Gang 
comedy were filmed on the grounds 
of Windsor Castle. 

Roberta Huby ankled her role 
in “Brouhaha” to tour with “Grab 
Me a Gondola” and has been re¬ 
placed by Hermione Harvey. 

Aileen Halfpenny resigned as 
general manager of Ambassadors 
Theatre following termination of 
J. W. Pemberton’s 21-year lease. 

Hildegarde Neff arrived to start 
her starring role in “Subway in 
the Sky,” which is being produced 
by Sydney Box and John Nasht. 

An Albert Whelan testimonial 
concert, organized by George EI- 
rick and sponsored by the Water. 
Rats, was held at Victoria Palace. 

John Mills cut short his vacation 
in Portofino, where he had been 
staying with Rex Harrison and Kay 
Kendall, to begin location lensing 
of ‘Tiger Bay.” 

Disney office tossed welcome 
home party for stars and cast of 
‘Third Man on the Mountain,” who 
just returned from an extended 
location in Zermatt, Switzerland. 

Victor Mature, who completed 
his role in “The Bandit” for War¬ 
wick Films, sailed on the Queen 
Mary. Also on the liner was Lord 
Foley, Britain’s piano playing peer. 


Portland, Ore. 

By Bay. Feres 

“South Pacific” (20th) at Broad¬ 
way and “Gigi” (MG) at Guild 
smash biz despite $2.50 and $3.00 
top. 

Leo Jaroff's Zutz nitery burned 
recently with damage estimated at 
$75-$100,000. Spot will reopen in 
about 90 days. 

Arthur. Lee Simpkins at the new 
Amato’s for two weeks. Club’s biz 
on upbeat since going- on a no 
cover, no min* policy and giving 
the nitery a facelifting. 

Construction on giant Entertain¬ 
ment and Recreation Center going 
full blast. Town in dire need of 
spot for sports, lectures, legit 
shows, etc. Sheraton Hotel con¬ 
struction also proceeding. 

Oregon Centennial Commission 
having difficult time retaining its 
members, five of the eight man 
Commission replaced already. 
Billy Rose reportedly was ap¬ 
proached for job of director and 
asked $500,000. He is still in 
Gotham. 


By John Florqnin 

(I Avenue Paul Deschanel) 

Richard Brooks visiting; 

Composer Villa-Lobos conduct¬ 
ing concert of Brazilian music. 

Jugoslav Kolo Ensemble suc¬ 
ceeding Moiseyev Ballet at 
Beaux-Arts. 

“Two for the Seesaw” will be 
produced this season by Belgian 
National Theatre. 

Sylvia Marlowe and Berl Senof- 
sky rounding up Classical recitals 
at the American Theatre. 

U. S. a late shfry at Interna¬ 
tional Presentation' of Film Pro¬ 
grams for Young People. 

“Mirele Efros”,. and “Sender 
Blank” presented by Warsaw Jew¬ 
ish Theatre as contribution to Arts 
Festival. 

Martha Modi heading cast of 
Carl Or:’s “Antigone”, presented 
by Stuttgart Opera under Wieland 
Wagner. 

Jean Cocteau taking part in 
“Man Before Art” public debate 
and lecturing on “Secret Arms of 
France” at Expo. 

Added to U.S. Performing Arts 
Program at Fair, “The Time of 
Your Life” with Franchot Tone 
and Susan Strasberg, preems Oct. 


Las Vegas 

By Forrest Duke 

(DUdley 2-6100) 

Tony Padden replaced Larry 
Lorimer as Dunes Hotel resident 
manager. 

Dianne Payne and Her Chap¬ 
erones playing to standees in 
Dunes lounge: 

Ginny Simms in from Palm , 


Springs for a couple of night* to 
catch the shows. 

Jerry Colonna’* new act is a 
natural for Tropicana lounge, 
where he packs house nightly. 

Phil Silvers, who opens at the 
Riviera Oct. 27, will film one of 
his Sgt. Bilko vidpix from Vegas. 

Harold Minsky negotiating with 
Robert Alda and Jack Carson as a 
Starring team for a future Minsky 
revue at the Dunes. 

Richard Hubert, Tropicana show¬ 
room maitre d\ moved to same 
post at Riviera. Johnny Morelli, 
former Dimes maitre, replaced 
Hubert. 

“The Idiots,” a new act starring 
Freddie Morgan and Mousie Gar¬ 
ner (formerly with Spike Jones 
I crew) a big click in Stardust 
lounge. 

Warren (Doc) Bayley, owner of 
Hacienda Hotel chain, hopes to 
open New ' Frontier’s casino and 
showroom New Year’s Eve. Wants 
longtime pa! Preston Foster to be 
front man. 

Danny Rogers, former enter¬ 
tainment director for now-shut¬ 
tered Royal Nevada, left for Lon¬ 
don where his comedy act is 
booked for eight weeks at the 
Stork Club beginning Oct. 25. He 
also does two guest . shots for 
BBC-TV. 


Pans 

By Gene Moskowitx 

(28 Rue Huchette; Odeon 49-44) 

“Holiday on Ice” into Palais Des 
Sports till Oct. 19. 

Yves Montand now disking on 
Philips label after severing ties 
with Odeon. 

Duke Ellingtbn pencilled in for 
four concerts at big Palais De 
Chaillot Oct. 28-29. 

Line Renaud to Canada for a 
singing stint and then to U.S. for 
Ed Sullivan tv appearance. 

Lido nitery doing capacity biz 
and will probably hold over its 
present show for another year. 

Belinda Lee in for a top role in 
French pic “This So Desired 
Body” opposite Daniel Gelin and 
Maurice Ronet with Luis Saslavsky 
' directing. 

H. G. Clouzot huddling with 
Carlo Ponti and due for a U.S. j 
trip soon with Ponti. He may 
direct a U.S. pic for Ponti starring J 
Sophia Loren. 

More than 80% of France will be 
covered by* tv beamings by ’59. 
[Weekly’time sked to go up to 50. 
hours from present 44. 

Barna M. Avre, daughter of 
Robbins, Feist and Miller exec 
Barney McDevitt, in for a year of 
study at Conservatory of Music] 
under Fulbrfght scholarship. 

| Micheline Presle joins Jean- 
! Louis Barrault-Madeleine Renaud 
legit company when they take over 
[ Palais Royale next month. She is 
also set for a pic stint opposite 
Francois Perier in “Bobosse.” 


Berlin 

By Htns Hoehn 

(76 02 64) 

Polish film, “The Canal,” 
preemed at local Allegro. 

German pop singer Freddy 
Quinn made a tour of 40 Scan¬ 
dinavian towns. 

Wolfgang Staudte’s “Canon 
Serenade” Germany’s contribution 
to Cork Festival. 

Charlie Chaplin’s “Dictator” 
finally preemed in Germany at 
local Astor theatre. 

Franz Grothe, one of Germany’s 
most prominent film composers, 
observed his 50th birthday. 

West German tv viewers now 
amount to 1,719,034 as of Aug. 1. 
West Berlin’s (86,114) are included. 
* Peter Beauvais, director of first 
UFA pic “Isn’t Mama Fabulous,” 
now under exclusive contract to 
UFA. 

“Wild Is The Wind” (Par) de¬ 
clared particularly valuable by 
West German film classification 
board; 

Veit Harlan started shooting his 
new Area pic, “I’ll Carry You On 
My Hands.” Pic stars his wife, 
Kristina Soederbaum. 


Omaha 

By Glenn Trump 

Carmen Cavallaro booked for a 
week at Angelo’s. 

Dick Benton Combo opened at 
Blackstone Hotel’s Cottonwood 
Room, 

Warren Covington and Tommy 
Dorsey Band signed for Corona¬ 
tion Ball 

Rumors have Brandeis Theatre 
in downtown Omaha shuttering 
within next few weeks. 

Royal Canadian Mounted Police 
headline Ak-Sar-Ben’* World 
Championship Rodeo here. 

Ak-Sar-Ben turned down Ring- 
ling Bros. Circus offer to become 
the Big Show's “winter quarters in 
the summertime.” 


Hollywood 

Arthur B. Krim in town. 

Zsa Zsa Gabor skied to Rome. 

Theodore Bikel home from Lon¬ 
don. 

George Pal will set up his own 
studio. 

Milton R. Rackmil arrived from 
Gotham. 

Glen McDaniel returned from 
Gotham. 

Milt Watt opened new public 
relations firm. 

Pandro Berman underwent 
minor surgery. 

Robert L. Lippert on short 
European jaunt. 

Jan Sterling back from eastern 
summer theatre tour. 

Irving Asher repacted for an¬ 
other year as TCF-TV sales vp. 

Marvin Miller emceed telethon 
for Louisville's Crusade for 
Children. 

Jerry Wald replaces Dick Powell, 
resigned, as 3d vp of Screen Pro¬ 
ducers Guild. 

Oscar Dystel and Saul David of 
Bantam Books here from Gotham 
for writer talks. 

John Ford named to . endorse¬ 
ments committtee by Civil War 
Centennial Commission. 

Screen Directors’ Guild holds its 
annual awards dinner-dance Feb. 
7 at Beverly Hilton Hotel. 

Martin Balk to Turkey and 
Israel to scout locations for Lynn 
[Associates’ initialer, “The Scroll.” 

Henry (Hank) Wadsworth suc¬ 
ceeds Ted Ellsworth as administra¬ 
tor of Motion Picture Industry 
Health and Welfare Plan. 

Hugo Haas’ “Stars In the Back 
Yard” will toss fund-raising one- 
night showing Nov. 6 at Fox Bev¬ 
erly Theatre for BH Committee 
for Honoring Motion Picture Stars. 


Ireland 

By Maxwell Sweeney 

(Dublin 68-4506) 

Director-cameraman Vincent 
Corcoran, back from Germany, 
leaves for Hollywood. 

Cyril Cusack signed for Rank 
Organization’s “Floods Of Fear,” 
Charles Crichton directs. 

James Cagney in for star role 
In “Shake Hands With The Devil,” 
Michael Anderson directs. Dana 
Wynter named femme lead in 
picture. 

Godfrey Quigley’s Globe Thea¬ 
tre added two new plays to fall 
schedule, Niall Montgomery's “The 
Heroic Cage/’ and James Douglas* 
“The Paper People.” 

Former Abbeyite Jack McGow- 
ran signed for Joxer Daly role in 
Marie Blitstein’s N.Y. production 
of musical version of Sean 
O’Casey’s “Juno And The Pay- 
cock.” 

Harry McGuirk signed Clipper 
Carlton’s Orch, Joe Lynch, cur¬ 
rently starring in “The Heart’s A 
Wonder,” and Charlie Byrne from 
same show, for guest shots at his 
Jagar House in Manhattan this fall. 

Impressarlo Albert Morbni in 
from N.Y. to set talent for U.S. 
tour. Project includes Irish Army 
Band, pipers’ group, children’s 
choir and harpists. He handled 
U.S. tours for Irish Festival 
Singers. 


Frankfort 

By Hazel Guild 

(24 Rheinstrasse; 776751) 

Former AFN staffer, Byron Kane 
featured on Stan Freberg’s record 
“Omaha,” playing the villain. 

Pfc Elvis Presley due shortly at 
his new station with 3rd Armored 
Division in nearby Friedberg. 

Harald Braun directing and pro¬ 
ducing “The Glass Menagerie” of 
Tennessee Williams on German tv 
net October 16. 

Noted film and stage actress Ida 
Wuest seriously ill with after¬ 
effects of a stroke. The 74-year- 
olcL actress made 230 films. 

Eugene O’Neill’s last complete 
work, two-person one-acter 
“Hughie” Is opening this fall at 
Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stock¬ 
holm. 

Chief of CCC films Artur Braun- 
er bought back film rights to “Old 
Heidelberg” and will film it next 
year with Karlheinz Boehm in the 
lead. 

Laurie LYondon, England’s 14- 
year-old singing star, slated for 
personal appearance tour in Ger¬ 
many later this year. 

Robert Ardrey, author of popu¬ 
lar drama “Thunder Rock,” ha* 
written a new play about Hungar¬ 
ian revolution and its heroes, 
which will be premiered in London 
this fall. 

German actor Albert Lieven, 
who recently appeared in “The 
Captain from Koepenick” on 
British tv, will have lead in a new 
play “Der Deserteur” (The De¬ 
serter), first play by a young 
American,. Nv Thaddeus Yane. 
Play is set at the end of the war 
in France. 


October 1, 1958 


71 


f'JGRlETr 


OBITUARIES 

CARL BRISSON 


Carl Brisson, 64, nitery singer, 
film and musical comedy actor, 
died Sept. 24 in Copenhagen of 
jaundice, while on a visit to his 
native country. Brisson is best re¬ 
membered on the nitery circuits in 
the United States where he was 
labeled the “older girls’ Sinatra” 
having played some of the more 
fashionable cafes and hotels on 
the class circuit. Brisson was re¬ 
garded as boxoffice for the haute- 
monde clientele and way booted in 
for long periods. He played the 
Versailles, N. Y., for example, for 
12 weeks. He worked the Waldorf^ 
Astoria, Plaza and other hostelries 
in New York as well as the Palmer 
House, Chicago, and others. 

Brisson’s first public appearances 
were as a boxer, winning the ama¬ 
teur lightweight championship at 
the age of 15 under his given name, 
Carl Pedersen. Later he became 
welterweight champion of Central 
Europe and Scandinavia. He 
bowed as a dancer in 1916 and 
later added singing while touring 
South Africa in revues. He de¬ 
buted in England in 1921 and two 
years later played Prince Danilo 
in “The Merry Widow” which he 
did in revival form for many years 
all over the world. .His last rendi¬ 
tion of that role was in Los An¬ 
geles in 1951. 

Brisson also appeared in films 
including “The Manxman,” direct¬ 
ed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1929. 
In 1934 he played in “Murder at 
the Vanities” opposite Kitty Car¬ 
lisle and with a cast including Vic¬ 
tor McLaglen and Jack Oakie. His 
Broadway musical bow was in an 
illfated Sigmund Romberg. oper¬ 


licensed radio operator. In 1956, 
when WIOD was supplanted by 
WCKR and WCKT (Biscayne Tele¬ 
vision Corp.), he became chief en¬ 
gineer of WCKT. - In that capacity 
at WCKT, he instituted the latest 
electronic improvements developed 
for telecasting and supervised 
many of the engineering details of 
the new station. 

A resident of South Florida since 
1926, he was active in the commu¬ 
nication areas of defense and dis¬ 
aster, 

Survived by his wife and son. 


ROSE STRADNER MANKIEWICZ 

Mrs. Rose Stradner Mankiewicz, 
45, former film actress and wife of 
film producer, writer and director 
Joseph L. Mankiewicz, died Sept. 
27 in Bedford Village, New York. 
She was found dead at the fam¬ 
ily’s summer home on Croton Lake 
Road. 

Her last film was “The Keys of 
the Kingdom,” a 1944 film directed 
by her husband for whieh her 
husband and Nunnally Johnson 
wrote the screenplay. Her films 
also include “Blind Alley,” “One 
Hundred Days of Napoleon,” and 
with Edward G. Robinson in “The 
Last Gangster.” 

She is also survived by two sons. 


JOSEPH C. FARRELL 
Joseph C. Farrell, 82, veteran 
publicist and onetime songplugger, 
died Sept. 26 in Rockford, Mich. 
Retired since 1953, he had tub- 
thumped at various times for the 
New York Giants and Chi White 
Sox baseball clubs, and Hie Chicago 
[Black Hawks hockey team. 

1 He left the law profession for 


photographer for the first Indian¬ 
apolis Speedway 500-mile race, in 
1911 and remained in that post 
until 1925. He made the first com¬ 
mercial film short for the-Stude- 
baker Corp., South Bend, Ind. 

Son, daughter and a sister sur¬ 
vive. 


LENA SANFORD ROBERTS 
Mrs. Lena Salford Roberts, .74, 
former musieomedy actress, died 
Sept 25 in New York, after a 
lengthy illness-jS&e was the wife 
of Lucky RobertsV.composer, pian¬ 
ist and orchestra leader. She sang 
in musicals composed by her hus- 
-band. They included “Magnolia,” 
“Baby Blues” and-“Follies of the 
Stroll.” 

Her daughter also- survives. 


KATHERINE F. SHOUSE 

Mrs. Katherine Fox Shouse, 46, 
wife of James D. Shouse, Crosley 
Broadcasting Corp. board chair¬ 
man, died Sept. 26 in Cincinnati 
several days after undergoing brain 
surgery. With WLW and WLW-TV 
for 19 years, the former “Kit” Fox 
was director of special services 
that brought awards to the sta¬ 
tions. 

She resigned in 1955 prior to her 
marriage. 


LEON C. KELMEE 
t Leon C. Kelmer, manager of the 
^RKO Albee, Brooklyn, until his re¬ 
tirement Jan. 9, 1956, died Sept. 
24 in Portchester, N.Y. He began 
his career with RKO Theatres in 
1914 when he joined the then B. F. 
Keith Circuit in Boston. Through 
the subsequent years he managed 
a number of important RKO Thea¬ 
tres. 

Survived by wife, son, Leon Jr. 
and a daughter. 


BEN LERNER 

[ Benjamin Jacobs, known profes¬ 
sionally as Ben Lerner, who was 
part of the team of Bixley & Ler- 
-ner, died Sept. 18 in New York. 
He worked the Mutual and Colum¬ 
bia burlesque -wheels for many 
years. Lerner was a charter mem¬ 
ber of the Burlesque Artists Assn. 

Survived by fpur sisters and a 
brother. Latter is Larry Jacobs, 
resident manager of the Variety 
Club in Baltimore^ 


FRANK P. DAVIS 
Frank Parker Davis, 88, patent 
attorney active in amateur theatre 
in the Chi area and father of ac¬ 
tor-director Fitzroy Davis, died 
Sept, 25 in Evanston, HL He was 
director of North Shore Theatre 
Guild and had collaborated with 
Lawrence Langner on several plays 
a number of years ago. 

Survived by duaghter and three 
[ sons. 


ELIZABETH RICHMOND 
Mrs. Elizabeth Richmond, 74, 
wife of Maurice Richmond, owner 
of Music Dealers Service, and 
mother of music publisher Howie 
Richmond, died in New York Sept 
27. 

Surviving in addition to her hus¬ 
band and son are another son, 
Lawrence Richmond, who. runs 
MDS, and a daughter. 


FREDERICK W. BRUNELLE 
Frederick W. Brunelle, 60, man¬ 
ager of the Ridgeway Theatre, 
Stamford, Conn., the last two years, 
died Sept 18 in that city. A resi¬ 
dent of Hollis, L.I., he had spent 
'his business life in theatre exhibi¬ 
tion with such outfits as Century 
Circuit, Walter Reade Theatres 
and Lockwood & Gordon. 

His wife survives. 


HENRY TELLER 

Henry Teller, 79, a Chicago 
music publisher for many years, 
died Sept 20 in that city. Since 
1940 he had headed a musical ac¬ 
cessories firm there. 

Survived by a son, daughter and 
two brothers. 

HARRY (BUFF) KAUFMAN 

Harry (Buff) Kaufman, 59, musi¬ 
cian and bandleader, died Sept. 21 
in a Chicago infirmary, where he 
had lived since his retirement in 
1951. 

Survived by four brothers and 
four sisters. 


TODD BAXTER 

/Todd Baxter, 65, musician and 
short story writer, died Sept. 18 in 
Southern Pines, N.C. Bom in 
Cleveland, he was a versatile in¬ 
strumentalist and for years had 
his own dance band. 

Surviving are his wife, daughter 
and two brothers. 


ARTHUR LAPIN 

Arthur Lapin, 66, member of 
Chicago motion picture operators 
Local 110, died Sept. 23 in that 
city. He had been a projectionist 
for some 40 years. 

Survived by Ms - wife, daughter, 
son and two sisters. 


ERNEST IVERSON 
Ernest Iverson, 54, a prominent 


tv, radio and stage performer in 
the Minneapolis area for 28 years, 
died Sept. 24 in that city. Billing 
himself as “Slim Jim.” he was 
known as a cowboy singer and guit¬ 
arist with a slight Scandinavian ac¬ 
cent and toured with his own 
shows. 

His wife and a daughter survive. 


FRANK ADAMS 
Frank Pitkevicz, 58, former 
drummer, died Sept. 17 in King¬ 
ston, Pa. Known professionally as 
Frank Adams, he played in orches¬ 
tras in and around Pennsylvania, 
for mom than 20 years. 

Wife, son, actor Wade Stevens, 
two daughters, two sisters and. two 
brothers survive. 


| DONALD J. GARDNER 

| Donald J. Gardner, 26, tv actor- 
dialog director, was killed Sept 26 
in auto accident near Malibu 
Beach, north of Santa Monica, Cal. 
He appeared in more than 30 
vidpix. 

His last stint was dialog director 
on the “Perry Mason” series. 


Mrs. Isabel - H. Wilder, wife of 
pioneer broadcaster Harry C. Wil¬ 
der, died In Santa Barbara, Calif., 
Sept. 15 after a long illness with a 
heart ailment. The Wilders made 
their home in Scottsdale, Ariz., 
since his retirement. He’s current¬ 
ly engaged in the real estate busi¬ 
ness there. 


Herbert Usher, 84, a lawyer, au¬ 
thor and actor, died Sept. 26 in 
New Haven, Conn., after a pro¬ 
longed sickness. He was a found¬ 
er of the Yale Dramatic Assn, and 
later acted in summer stock and 
on radio-tv shows. He practiced 
law in New Haven and Hartford. 


Nevada Van der Veer, 74, noted 
oratorio singer and teacher, died 
Sept. 26 in New York, after a long 
illness. She also sang with the 
Philadelphia Opera in “Lohengrin” 
and “Gotterdammerung,” and with 
leading symphonies in this country 
and in Europe. 


Jasper Barron, 57, projectionist 
with Rowley United Theatres since 
1925, died recently in Dallas. Sur¬ 
viving are his wife, son, his mother, 
three brothers and three sisters. 


Edgar Isaacs, 71, branch manager 
of United Artists in Leeds, Eng., 
for the past 28 years, died Sept. 20 
in that city. His wife, and two Sons 
survive. 


Wife, 72, of Jack Jungmeyer, 
Disney staff writer and former 
Variety staffer; died Sept. 20 after 
long illness in Encino, Cal. 


David S. McNair, former time 
salesman for WOKO, Albany, died 
Sept. 21 in Winchester, Mass. His 
wife survives. 


Edward Dnnstan, 73, actor and 
producer who ran his own Shake¬ 
spearean company for 20 years, 
died Sept. 23 in Bognor Regis, Eng. 


Wife of composer Alexander 
Alstone, died Sept. 24 in Geneva, 
Switzerland. Son and mother also 
survive. 


Mother, 64, of Mort Hockstein, 
of NBC press, died Sept. 22 in 
Somerville, N. J. 


Nathan Hart, 59, vet radio-tv 
salesman, died Sept, 19 in Holly¬ 
wood. 


Fattier, 63, of actress Edith 
Adams, died Sept. 26 in Engle¬ 
wood, N. J. 


Father, 74, of actor Allen K. 
Carter, died Sept. 21 in Hollywood. 


John Huston 

, Continued from page 5 

tionately via audience appreciation 
of the visual values. 

For instance, Mark Robson shot 
“Inn of the Sixth Happiness” in 
England and Wales instead of on 
location in Formosa. A set was 
built in London and another out-, 
door one was constructed in i 
Wales. Robson said he defied the ’ 
ordinary person to tell the differ¬ 
ence in locales. Yet, shooting in 
the London studios, with all the 
modern equipment at hand, cer¬ 
tainly reduced costs. 

Noting the current trend in 
“epics,” Huston said it was devel¬ 
oping largely in contradistinction 
to television. “I am not sure it will 
last,” he added. “There’s always 
room for the painter of frescoes : 
arid the artist with simple black- j 
and-white drawings.” The subject 
increasingly will determine the 
treatment, he held. J 


In Loving Memory of My Husband 

&rt(e “Mr. Kitzel” &uerfoacf) 

October 3, 1957 

He Left a Little of Himself in the Hearts of Many 


etta, “Forbidden Melody” in 1936 
where he made a favorable impact 
despite the unfavorable reception 
given the show. After a tour of 
EnglantJ, Brisson returned to the 
United States where he settled into 
eafe work. 

He was well-known for his char¬ 
itable works, in the Scandinavian 
countries and was frequently dec¬ 
orated by royalty. He received the 
Order of Dannebrog from King 
Frederick IX in 1938 and also the 
Swedish order of Vasa. He also 
endowed an orphan home in his 
native country. 

Over 3,000 attended the funeral 
in Copenhagen and flags were at 
half-mast for the late singing idol 
of Denmark. Premier Hans Han¬ 
sen and Julius Hansen, Mayor of 
Copenhagen, were among the pall¬ 
bearers. A requiem mass was of¬ 
fered for the star who, last Thurs¬ 
day (25), a day before his death, 
was converted to the Roman Cath¬ 
olic Church. He had been in the 
Komune Hospital in his native 
Copenhagen for three months, suf¬ 
fering from cancer of the liver. 

Survived by his wife, the former 
Cleo Willard, and his son, producer 
Frederick Brisson, who is married 
to actress Rosalind Russell, and a 
grandson. 


JOHN MAY 

John May, a sales executive of 
Screen Gems, Inc., died Sept. 23 
when a private plane in which he 
was a passenger crashed into a 
awamp near the Salisbury, N.C. 
airport. Also killed was Charlotte, 
N.C., advertising executive Eugene 
Sink, who was at the controls. 
Salisbury police theorized that the 
private plane has made a poor land¬ 
ing at the airport, had been pushed 
back onto a runway, and had 
gashed while attempting a take- 

May joined Screen Gems in 
September, 1957. He had previous¬ 
ly been associated with Ziv Tele¬ 
vision and with TV stations WXEX- 
TV, Richmond, Va., and WMTW- 
TV, Portland, Me. 

Survived by his wife, son and 
daughter. 


MILTON SCOTT 
Milton C. Scott, Jr., 51, chief 
engineer and executive of WCKT, 
Flor ida, died Sept. 20 in 
thai city. A‘pioneer in the broad- 
Scott joined radio 
station WIOD in 1925 as its sole 


song plugging on Broadway at the 
turn of the century, then joined 
the Giants as their publicist under 
the John McGiraw regime. He 
moved to Chi and the White Sox 
in 1916, arid 10 years later went 
with the Black Hawks at their 
founding. 

His wife survives. 


JOHN GAUNT 

John Gaunt, 46, radio-tv v.p. of 
Grant Advertising, died of a heart 
attack Sept. 23 in Hollywood. 
Beginning his career in New York 
in 1934 as a theatre stage manager 
and bandleader, he moved to Holly¬ 
wood as assistant director at UI, 
and in 1940 joined the staff of 
NBC as producer-director. 

He was the first director of “The 
Red Skelton Show” in NBQ and in 
recent years received many awards 
for his work on ABC’s “Lawrence 
Welk Show.” He was also known 
as an authority on radio and tv 
commercials. 

His wife and two daughters sur¬ 
vive. 


MRS. FAUSTINA C, BARKER 

Mrs. Faustina C. Barker, 79, 
member of a vaude act which 
toured the U.S. and Europe in the 
early part of the century, died at 
a nursing home in Reading, Mass., 
Sept. 18. Her partner in the Lang- 
weed Sisters, Elizabeth Mansergh, 
still is a patient at the same home 

Mrs. Barker made her home in 
Reading for 44 years following re¬ 
tirement from vaude. • The two 
partners operated the El’FIo vil¬ 
lage grocery in North Reading and 
taught dadoing and * singing for 
many years. No survivors are listed. 

HENRY KAVANAGH 

Henry Edward (Ted) Kavanagh, 
66, a radio script writer and cre¬ 
ator of the comedy series “ITMA” 
(It’s That Man Again), a British 
favorite during World War II, died 
Sept. 17 in London. 

A New Zealander, he went to 
England to study' medicine but 
turned to writing after the first 
World War. In addition to his 
numerous magazine articles, he 
also wrote humorous monologs 
for the late Tommy Handley, one 
of England’s top comedians. 

HARRY H. COBURN 

Harry H. Coburn, 78, a pioneer 
in. motion picture photography, 
died Sept. 24 on a plane enroute 
to New York. He served as official 


Even Philly 

Continued from page 2 

star answered: “They all say ‘why 
don’t you send more good pic¬ 
tures?’ They stress that good sto¬ 
ries make good pictures, as though 
this is a new Idea. And you have 
to explain that good stories are 
hard to find, that nobody ever 
starts out to make a lousy picture. 
Sometimes they confuse direction 
and acting with writing. If an actor 
has a plum part written for him, 
they credit the actor or director, 
whereas it should go to the writer. 
And conversely, sometimes when 
an actor and director come off bet¬ 
ter with a character than the way 
it was written, they don’t grasp 
that. But I suppose we shouldn’t 
expect them to. 

“I heard occasional complaints 
about the teenage, horror and 
gorilla pictures. I told them they 
don’t condemn books because pulps 
are put out, and by the same token 
they shouldn’t condemn our indus¬ 
try because of this type of product. 
There is a tendency to generalize,’* 
commented Peck- 

Actor’s next starring vehicle is 
“On the Beach.” for Stanley Kra¬ 
mer. Film rolls in Australia in 
January. 


MARRIAGES 

Marilyn Anita Holt to Robert F. 

| Edgerly, Laconia, N.H., recently. 
He’s an announcer with radio sta¬ 
tion WGIR, Manchester, N.H. 

Sandra Milstein to William K. 
Everson, New York, Sept. 26. 
Bride is a film editor; he’s a tv 
writer-producer. 

Sandra Jo Drummond to Philip 
Crosby, Las Vegas, Sept. 25. She 
is a Las Vegas showgirl: he’s the 
son of Bing Crosby. His twin, Den¬ 
nis also married a Las Vegas show¬ 
girl, Pat Sheehan, last May. 


BIRTHS 

| Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Karsh, twin 
sons, Pittsburgh, Sept 23. Moth¬ 
er’s with the Pittsburgh Opera 
Company. 

Mr. and Mrs. Peter Hall, daugh- J 
ter, London, Sept 21. Father is a 
stage director; mother is actress 
Leslie Caron. 

Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Alsberg, 
daughter, Hollywood, Sept 20. 
Father is scripter on CBS-TV’a 
“Bachelor Father.” 

Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Child, 
daughter, Houston, Tex., Sept 17. 
Father is director of National Chil¬ 
dren’s Theatre and former deejay, 
WRUM, Rumford, Me; mother is a 
dancer known professionally as 
Kaye Terry. ' 

Mr. and Mrs. Emil Sitka, son, 
Hollywood, Sept. 19. Father’s an 
actor. 

Mr. and Mrs. Bill Howe, daugh¬ 
ter, Burbank, Cal., Sept. 23. Moth¬ 
er is dancer Ruby Howe; father is 
pianisf-ehtertai ner. 

Mr. and Mrs. Max Butterfield, 
daughter, London, Sept. 23. Father 
is a film actor; mother is actress 
Jan Richards. 

i Mr, and Mrs. Alain Bernheim, 
son, Paris, Sept. 20. Mother, the 
; former Margy Kesrier, is an ex- 
newspaperwoman; father is a Yank 
literary agent now domiciled in 
Paris. , 

Mr. and Mrs. Dick Golden, son, 
Philadelphia, Sept. 22. Father is 
WFIL promotion director. 

Mr. and Mrs. Jimmy Lyons, 
daughter, Monterey, Cal., Sept. 
12. Mother is ex-Metro press 
agent Terre Cox; father is a Mon¬ 
terey and Frisco deejay, general 
manager of Monterey Jazz Festival. 

Mr. and Mrs. Roe Taylor, 
daughter, Philadelphia, Sept. 22. 
Parents are the “Pat and Jack” 
of the WPEN morning show. 

Mr. and Mrs. Kenny Rogers, 
daughter, Houston, recently. 
Father is leader of a musical 
combo there. 

Mr. and Mrs. Gary Artzt, son, 
San Antonio, Sept. 24. Father is 
an artist on staff of WOAI-TV in 
that city. 

Mr. and Mrs. Alvin Thaler, son. 
New York, Sept. 20. Father is as¬ 
sistant production manager of the 
program department at CBS-TV. 

Mr. and Mrs. Harry Blum, son. 
New York, Sept. 24. Father is a 
special material writer for nitery 
acts. 

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Claver, 
daughter, New York, Sept. 27. 
[Mother is the daughter of Milton 
I Krasne, executive vice president of 
l General Artists Corp., father is 
producer of “Captain Kangaroo” 
on CBS tele. 

Mr. and Mrs. Paul Libin, son. 
New York, Sept. 26. Father is co- 
producer of the off-Broadway pro¬ 
duction of “The Crucible.” 



PXsdffFf 


Wednesday, October 1, 195S 

















Published Weekly at 154 West 46th Street. New York 36. N. Y.. by Variety. Inc. Annual subscription. $15. Single copies. 35 cents. 
Second Class Postage Paid at New York, N^Y. 

COPYRIGHT. 1958. BY VARIETY. INC.' ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 


VOL. 212 No. 6 


NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 1958 


80 PAGES 




STEAL EUROPE’S SEX 


MGA-TV Will Recoup $50,000,000 
far Library Coin By End of Month 


MCA-TV, which committed itself 4— 
to pay $50,000,000 for the Para- < 
mount library, should gross just 
about that by the end of next 
month. ’ 

To date, in five months of active 
selling, MCA-TV has grossed over 
$40,000,000. The 700 Paramount pix 
have gone to 18 U.S. markets at 
this date, with most of the stations 
signing up for the full library. 
Virtually all the major markets, 
except Chicago, have been sold. 
Chicago stations now have been 
given the price list and licensing 
period for each pic, as per custom. 

Latest markets sold are WJW- 
TV, Cleveland,, and WITI-TV, Mil- * 
waukee, each buying the full li- ;= 
hrary. The Milwaukee deal was _ 
made subject to the FCC’s approval I 
of Storeys purchase of the station, f 
WJW-TV also is a Storer outlet. * 
Another four markets, representing 
about $4,000,000 in billings, are 
known to be close to signing. 

Remaining for sizable coin are * 
the so-called middle markets, such 
as San Francisco,, Pittsburgh, Hart¬ 
ford, Charleston, Dallas, and Prov¬ 
idence. No one’s guessing at MCA- 
TV, but seasoned forecasts are that 
(Continued on page 44) ' 


lUMBl 


Pope Pius XIFs Constant Anxiety 
For Moral Tone of Screen, Video 


Damn Yankee*’ Indeed! By FRED hift 

* Milwaukee, Oct. 7. “They’re stealing our thunder!” 

Baseball fans here had That’s the complaint these days 

themselves a particularly sor-. of the independent U.S. distribu- 
rowful day on Monday (6) tors of foreign films as they note 
when the Y£nkees clobbered the rising sex content of the Hol- 
the Braves in the fifth, game. lywood output. Importers are 
of the World Series at Yankee only half-serious, of course, but 
Stadium. underneath it all there’s a note 

Film exhibitors, especially, of real concern, 

took it on the chin with the “The American films have grab- 
city glued to radio and video bed the ball from the Europeans 
sets. One. of the key houses in and are running with it,” said Ed- 
town was showing “Damn ward L. Kingsley of Kingsley-In- 
Yankees” and biz was in keepr % ternational. “If they keep it up,. 
ing with the title. o ' they’ll be outstripping the imports 

■ ! ■ in sex frankness. It’ll take the edge 

m 1 in 1 /t off our pictures. 

Itfirfl Mlinn l.ront There’S a degree of irony in the 

A U1II A U1IU UI Alii " fact "that, as overseas producers 
* seek to “adapt” their output to 

f|T |T 1 1\ I American tastes and demands, by 

I A Haiti I IAITAIaVI Which they often understand mut- 
. AW 11C1U A/C T C1VIJ' ing of the Sex angle for the U.S. 

* .!.<■* Production Code and Legion of 

IT n T>| • I - Decency, Hollywood is taking a 

11 V ylniTMW/rnfo leaf from the Europeans and is 
U*k?« 1 lay TTl l&llla giving its films "the works.” Part 
* of the reason, of course, is that 

Ford Foundation grant of American producers have taken 


4- Pope Pius XII, who suffered a 
n . paralyzing stroke at his summer 

'Burley Training Grind 7 Jiome at Castel Gandolfo Monday 
Elmira, N. Y., Oct. 7. morning (6), has been intensively 
This burg, once a citadel of concerned during his reign with 
burlesque, wonders if the cur- the impact of motion pictures and 
rent hula hoop craze will television on Roman Catholics. His 

prove the proving grind for approach, as was emphasized again 
some future school of bumps- in last year’s Encyclical letter, has 

and-grinds artists. been largely positive and he has 

Somehow the local aficlana- s J riv ™' J ° n 5 ?T eraI ““sions to 
dos appear to be more ad- clearly define Ins views on the dual 
vanced—-if a kid can't gyrate to P lcs o£ fiLm and «deo. 
two hoops she’s a square. In June of 1955, he defended 

.i——^ film censorship by the state as 
_ ' ' justified “in order to defend the 

r n common civil and common heri- 

nni^Srl^ rXlNl tage.” The spirit of our times, he 

1/1 UoOVlO AjA|IU tDld film industry representatives 

• from all over the world, “is un- 

l |f__ |1 reasonably intolerant” of inter- 

I .nlini N 11111 IK vention by public authority. He 

vvtUllv P HU added that leaders in the film busi- 

• ness" themselves should censor im- 

P* 0 f 1 .,,.. _ moral pictures and produce “good, 

rI3SC0S & uVDS nob!e and beautiful films.” 

Vr In this same speech, "the Pope 

By JOHN FLORQCTN d ! sc ^ sed th . e °f, “ the ideal 

film” and said it had to strengthen 

Brussels Oct. 7. and uplift man in the conscious- 
Baron Moens de Pemlg, comrqis- ness of his dignity,” increase his 
sioner-general of the 1958 Expo, knowledge and love of the lofty 


rarmanv’c Anna Prenlr been clarified,and put into opera- were partly successful precisely skeptics iTarbed the .irascible baron 

uermany 5 ADUC riflfll tion. Covering a -Iwo-year period, because they are candid. w b 0 has been a picturesque target 

a l tit* *r n y ' the fund is designed to give as Foreign films in the States dur- for humorous epigrams. But the 
3601161 It IDS l OP IlHfllV many as 10 authors a year an op- ing recent years have thrived— 35,000,000 target has not only been 

• U_' n, , portunity of sitting in during the at the popular level—because of reached but will be exceeded by 

rnzeon Human KiAhts entire course of the production of I their reputation of being sexy. I Oct. 20, when the International Ex- 
v . _ 7° their plays. Many of them are sold to the U.S. position folds.- 

._ ... Venice, oct. 7. The grant, based on the assump- public on that theme and plug it Rut what about- private enter- 

Germany, oddly enough, won the tion that most unknown play- unrestrainedly in their newspaper prise at the Fair? To say the least, 
Human Rights pnze for the best -wrights Work at other jobs for ads. The American pix ads some- results are discouraging. Business 
dramatic radio work at the luth their livelihood, Involves under- times play up sex situations not has been bad, prices were steep, 
annual competition of the Italia writing salary losses and other ex- actually “delivered” on the screen. Concessionaires were roped in, 
Pnze. Ernest Schnabel wrote and (Continued on page 76) (Continued on page 15) (Continued On page 64' 


$213,600 for the development of more and more to adapting hit boasted a 35,000,000 attendance natural position conferred on him 
new American playwrights has plays and novels, which in v turn before the Fair opened its doors, by his Creator, strengthen his con- 
been clarified,and put into opera- were partly successful precisely skeptics garbed the .irascible baron (Continued on page 70) 

fmn PattamSmit a J hAAOTfCO. TnOV 9T*A AUT1 Hln i « m • i m i ^ ° 


Venice, Oct. 7. 


Prize. Ernest Schnabel wrote and 
produced the documentary on what 
happened to Anne Frank when the 
Broadway play version ended. The 
“Sequel of Anne Frank” received 
the $2,0CHKprize. Even the Israeli 
member o£ the jury voted for Ger¬ 
many in this instance. 

Australian Broadcasting System 
won first priz^ in the literary and 
“dramatic category with an hour- 
(Continued on page 79) - 


Drive-In on Deck of Shopping Centre 
In Downtown Dover Makes ‘History 


By GEORGE GILBERT 


‘Brigitte’ Ratter 1st 
Ex ‘ For Distel -in Dot Pact 
=*£ (With B.B. on the Co?er) 

eep Sacha Distel, Brigitte Bardot’s 
bj* fiance, has been tapped for U.S. 

’ disk release by Dot Records. The 

_ guitarist-singer records in France 

* for Ray Ventura’s Versailles label.. 
His first Dot release will be his 
) own composition, “Brigitte,” with 
English lyrics by Fred Ebb. The 
Dot album currently in preparation 
- 2 will feature a cover photo of Mile, 
i/* Bardot. 

' Distel’s tunes are published in 

! t h e l the U.S. by Rayven Music which is 
JL run by Duke Niles for Ventura. 


ozoner. Latter is built on* the top were steadily decreasing but in the 7" z? 7“ m;i oc f nr VAnh.ra 

ns-* 018 “ ttey have 

that s said to be the largest of its doubled. livan's CBS-TV show last week (28) 


“ ' due to the need for large tracts 1 

|)|ff|r.Tj|||£ NavI V$ar that could be acquired for a rea*- for use of shoppers. 
vwn WAl iwu sonable sum. In the past no de- Upper level, whos 


Legit May Cut-Price' 

Self, Sez John Shnbert 

John Shubert, presiding last Mon- 


-- Dover, N.J., Oct. 7. uavc Distel made his tv bow on Ed *ul- 

41 i)aa AAA AAA t ' Drive-ins traditionally have be^n 1 ?? doabled ' livan's CBS-TV show last week (28) 

$1 300 000 000 In located well outside urban centres- country. It provides Periphery shopping centres, f or which he received a reported 

UCC f 111 \ due t0 the need for large tracts five ^cres- 0 f free parking space Ehrlich feels, aren’t always the $5>0 00. 

Dick-Tan# NatI Y#ar that could be acquired for a rea- for use of shoppers - answer to generating more busi- -:- 

V19I1 lajre l\Cll txai sonable sum. In the past no de- Upper level, whose absence of ness. Frequently they’re served 
The disk and tape biz, including veloper or exhibitor could visualize conventional drive-in speaker posts by only one highway and the limit- I^-Ji M-y Ollf-PrirP 

playback equipment, will climb to Construction of an open air the- makes it unique, is used by day- ed access tends to deter customers. 1Tia J vul * 14 « c 

a new all-time gross of $1,300,- atre accommodating hundreds x of time shoppers as a place to leave Nevertheless they’re strong factors Q If I 1 _ PL n L_ r |. 

000,000 in 1959, according to Rob- cars in the centre of a “downtown” their cars. But at night it be- in drawing trade away from estab- uCll, OcZ JODD tJutUfCi l 

ert Baggs, head of RCA Victor’s shopping district, comes an open air theatre replete lished downtown merchants. John ghubert, presiding last Mon- 

radio-phonograph division. But through the joint efforts of with a 60' x 130' screen, an L- in contrast to peripheral shop- day (6) at the annual stockholders 

Baggs, in spotlighting the poten- Walter Reade, a former president shaped concession stand, children’s ping centres which may be located meeting of the Shubert-controlled 

tial of home music on disks and of the Theatre Owners of America Playground and walk-in facilities on one r0 ad, Ehrlich emphasized Select Theatres Corp., expressed 

tapes to a meeting of retailers In and head of the circuit bearing his tor 200 patrons. that Dover is the hub of northwest concern over the high cost of thea- 

‘ffew York last week, made, the father’s name, and builder Milton Among tenants at the_Dover Jersey with five highways converg- tregoing. Rapping the trend to- 

following breakdown of anticipated L. Ehrlich a 608-car ozoner opened Shopping Center, aside from The ing in the city. His development, wardsincreased ticket prices, Shu- 

salesi $575,000,000 in high fidelity here Saturday <4) in the heart of Reade Drive-in, are Woolworth, J. he added, has revived Dover's bert said that he was in favor of 

phonograph equipment, a major this city of some 15,000 people. 0. Penney, a Food Fair market downtown shopping area and keeping the b.o. scale down to a 

percentage of 'Which will be in The Dover Drive-in, known as and a bowling alley. A large de- there’s no reason why the same $7-$8 top. 

Stereo; $125,000,000* in low-priced the Theatre in the Sky, is a vital partment store will also rise on a thing can’t be duplicated in other However, he also made it clear 

phonographs; $400,000,000 in' disk part of Ehrlich’s 34-store Dover site now being excavated. “Before cities whose merchants have seen that increases will be necessary If 

sales; $50,000,00 in tape sales; I Shopping Center Inc. which he es-< l .the shopping centre, was built,” [trade drifting out of town. t expenses continue to climb, Such 

and $14,000,000 in tape machine timatys represents; .an investment Ehrlich pointed out, “property Such future developments, Ehr- a situation, he feels, might result 

. of about $9,000,PQ0. including the [values* in the downtown section] (Continued on page 19) ~ in the theatre out-pricing itself. 




























MfSCStiJtlVY 



P MSlBTf 


y«toibd<T, Otlolitr 8, 1958 


But May Still Try Drama Fesi gi 1959 


Dublin, Oct. 7. 

Despite the collapse of Dublin’s 
1958 International Theatre Festi¬ 
val, the city may try anew in 1959. 
If so, it will be set as a commercial 
project as well as a tourist lure. 

Preliminary discussions have 
^been held under the chairmanship 
of Louis Elliman, president of 
Dublin’s Gjaiety Theatre, manag¬ 
ing director of the J. Arthur Hank 
cinema circuit here, and a direc¬ 
tor of the newly-built Ardmore 
Studios. Elliman was unconnected 
with the earlipr venture, except 
in making the Gaiety Theatre 
available to tie-in with the organ¬ 
izing committee’s plans. 

. A farcical situation was created 
this year by the mixups over 
scheduled plays. One play, Alan 
McClelland’s dramatization of 
James Joyce’s '“Ulysses,” was sub¬ 
sequently rejected and then Sean 
O’Casey refused the producer’s re¬ 
quest to make changes in “The 
Drams of Father -Ned.” 

A third blowup involved the 
withdrawal of a new play by Sam¬ 
uel Beckett, an expatriot Dub¬ 
liner now living in Paris. Much 
of the whole sorry sequence ap¬ 
parently stemmed from the fact 
that although Brendan Smith was 
director of the Festival, he was 
subject to the veto of a committee 
not knowing aboutyshow business. 

O’Casey has warred with his 
countrymen on several occasions, 
but this time producer Jim Fitz¬ 
gerald had sought changes in 
“Drums’* for technical not content 
reasons. O’Casey refused - and 
withdrew the piece. The Joyce 
play was dropped because, the Fes¬ 
tival committee was nervous that 
it might offend clerics. 

Dublin’s Theatre Festivals have 
been laden with trouble. The 1957 
edition was notable for the arrest 
of producer Alan Simpson at the 
Pike Theatre on charge of present¬ 
ing an “obscene” play, Tennes¬ 
see William’s “Hose Tattoo.” The 
case was thrown out. 


BlasdkeSweet Back ' 

Hollywood, Oct 7. 

Blanche Sweet, one of the 
screen’s immortals when movies 
were young, returns to film acting 
as guest star in a “Thin Man” seg¬ 
ment at MOM-TV. 

Actress last* faced the cameras 
in 1931. 


PAIGE, NEGROTWIRLER, 
IN MEX FILM DEBUT 

- Kansas City, Oct. 7. 

Leroy “Satchel” Paige, the age¬ 
less baseball tosser. Is giving up 
the diamond to take on an embry¬ 
onic career in motion pictures. He 
confirmed at his home in Kansas 
City that he has signed with film 
producer Chester Erskine for a 
role in “The Wonderful pountry.” 
Paige reports Wednesday. (8) in 
Mexico City to begin work in the 
film. He’ll play a sergeailt in a 
story based on a book by Thomas 
Lea. 

Top pitcher for the Miami team 
of the International League for the 
past three seasons, Paige said he 
is through with baseball if he can 
make the grade in films. He is re¬ 
ported to have earned a fortune 
playing in the Negro leagues be¬ 
fore the majors were opened to 
colored players. 


10 th Ansi of FranzLehar 

An affectionate tribute to Franz 
Lehar to commemorate the 10th 
anniversary of his death, on Oct. 
24, has been written by Maria von 
Peteani, based on her larger auto¬ 
biography of the composer. 

The illustrated bookfSt published 
by Glocken Verlag, Ltd., London, 
subsidiary pf the Viennese publish¬ 
ing house of that name and tied 
to Franz Lehar’s Glocken Verlag 
Ine., Sweetsburg, Quebec, Canada, 
briefly describes - Lehar’s begin¬ 
nings, and his struggles both with 
the world and himself in order to 
find his ultimate objective. Lehar’s 
magnum opus, of course, is “The 
Merry Widow,” but he’s also re¬ 
nowned for many other operettas, 
including “Count of Luxembourg,” 
“Gypsy Love,” J*Eva,” “Land of 
Smiles,” .and others. Lehar’s works 
also induced Richard Tauber to 
channel his talents to a lighter 
phase and, at one time, he was 
known as “Lehar’s tenor.” Lehar 
died in 1948. 


Paar Gets Nod As 

Tersonality of Year’ 

Washington, Oct. 7. 

Jack Paar, the insomaniac’s de¬ 
light, has been named “Personality 
of the Year” for 1958 by the 
Variety Club of Washington, Tent 
H. 

Paar will be given a plaque at 
the club’s annual dinner-dance at 
the Statler Hotel Nov. 22. Previous 
winners include A1 Jolson, Arthur 
Godfrey, Joe f E. Brown, Perry 
Como, Jane Framan, Eddie Fisher, 
Steve Allen, Pat^Boone, and Kitty 
Kallen. 

The dinner will climax the fund- 
'raising drive which has as its most 
recent project a $200,000 contribu¬ 
tion toward the Variety Club Re¬ 
search Center of Children’s Hospi¬ 
tal. 


Modugno's N. J. Kudos 

* . Atlantic City, Oct. 7. 

Domenico Modugno, Italian 
singer (“Nel Blu Dipinao Di Blu”). 
was made an honorary citizen of 
Somers Point, resort suburban 
community, last week. 

Point * s publicity - conscious 
mayor, Fred Chapman, on l e a rnin g 
Modugno was in the city, invited 
him to a dinner attended by some 
20 persons, and conferred the hon¬ 
or with n^jifrs cameras and local 
and wire reporters present 


10/8 



Subscription Order Form 


Enclosed find check for $ 

□ One Year 

Please send VARIETY for □ Two Years 

□ Three Years 


To 


(Please Print Name) 


Street 

City... 


Zone.. . State. 


Regolar Subscription totes 
One Year—$15.00 Two Years—$28.00 

Three Years—$39.00 

Canada and Foreign—$1 Additional Per Year 
PfiRIETYlnc. 

154 West 46th Street ^ New York 36* N. Y. 


IAMBI'S BAMBINO BOWS 

£ettn4a Alexander In State <Debvt’ 
At Ate Two 


Augusta, Me., Oct. 7. 

Belinda Alexander, two-year old 
daughter of Bambi Linn and Bod 
Alexander, made her stage bow 
here with, her parents in their 
“Dance Jubilee,” a new dance nov¬ 
elty booked- by Columbia Artists 
Management for a tour of 90 dates 
this season. 

Fledgling ballerina twirls on 
stage in a “Schooldays” number 
based on Gus Edwards nostalgia. 

Conceived and staged by Alex¬ 
ander, “Jubilee” is a panorama of 
American dance patterns, theatre, 
social and balletic, from minstrel 
days to the present 

Pair returned to New York (5) to 
do numbers from their routine on 
Ed Sullivan Show. 

Columbia Artists, through Hum¬ 
phrey Doulens and Chris Schang, 
have booked tour through mid- 
February. Second tour which, will 
include Coast time, is projected for 
next season. 

Melville. Burke, Broadway direc¬ 
tor, comes out of his Westport re¬ 
tirement, to act as a narrator of the 
changing dance years. 


Legion of Decency 
V Ratings Drop 


Having pifeviously officially rec¬ 
ognized that not all motion.pictures 
are made for. adults and juveniles 
alike, the Roman Catholic National 
Legion pf Decency during the past 
year sharply reduced the number 
of B (Morally Objectionable in 
Part for All)' ratings for films. 

The development represents a 
long stride forward on the part of 
the Church and is due to the in¬ 
novation of the Legion’s third “A” 
rating (Morally Unobjectionable 
for Adults) last December. It is 
this rating which has absorbed a 
great many of the films which nor¬ 
mally would have, received a “B” 
tag. During the past 11 months, the 
number of “B”s correspondingly 
(Continued on page 70) 


JBernsteins Como-Like 'At Home 
May Revolutionize Longhair Concerts 


Frisco s Retort 
To Met’s Bing 

San Francisco, Oct. .7. 

Kurt Herbert A’dler, who should 
know better, took umbrage last 
week at some depreciatory Te¬ 
rn arks about U.S. opera by Rudolf 
Bing, who should know better. 

Bmg, general manager of New 
York’s Met," casually -told a United 
Press reporter that the U.S., out¬ 
side New York, has no opera 
“worth speaking .of,” that he saw 
no “chance for any real serious de¬ 
velopment of opera in this coun¬ 
try,” partly because the U.S. pub¬ 
lic “has been so educated to the 
star cult that even the smallest 
(Continued on page 70) 


. Frankfort, Oct. 1. 

Metro director Richard Brooks just fulfilled a longtime ambition 
of “getting a^ay from the telephone and all those mobsters”— 
and found 1 it unbelievable mental torture. 

Brooks took a 24-day trip on the freighter -Golden Gate to Eu¬ 
rope, to work on the script of his next film “Elmer Gantry” en 
route and to get away from it all But,after a day at sea, lie was 
yearning to hear a phone ring. 

Explained Brooks, “The only thing you die of in Hollywood 
is failure. You don’t die of a heart attack ox tuberculosis, you die 
of 'failure. And you think you’re a failure .when nobody calls. I 
just kept waiting for a phone to ring ...” 

Brightest sight was when the ship docked at Antwerp and Brooks 
spotted a Metro exec standing on the pier and shouting “Have you 
seen Variety yet?” (with grosses on his “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.”) 
Brooks said, “My first thought was, why was he there? Was the 
picture a. flop? But then I figured if it was a disaster, Metro 
wouldn’t sfend anybody to meet me.” 


Stew Hathaway Upped 

Hollywood, Oct. 7. v 
Stewart H. Hathaway, manager 
and assistant treasurer of the Bev¬ 
erly Hills Hotel, has been upped 
to veepee and managing director 
by Ben Silberstein, owner of the 
posh BevHills spot, long, a favor¬ 
ite with show biz brass. Previous 
m.d. title, was held by Hernando 
Courtright whose five-year contract 
as president of the hotel corpora¬ 
tion was just about up when he 
resigned last month following 
policy differences witS Silberstein. 

Hathaway’s hotel background is 
extensive including the Santa Bar¬ 
bara Ambassador, the Clift in 
Frisco, the Gaylord, in downtown 
L.A., and the HoRywood-Roose- 
velt. 


SAM RAYBURN ORATES 
FOR TEXAS’N’CUBURN 

Dallas,'Oct. 7. . 
Sam Rayburn, speaker of the 
U.S. House of Representatives^ will 
act for the state of Texas in wel¬ 
coming pianist Van Cliburn back 
to Dallas on Nov. 28. Cliburn, from 
Kilgore, won the G. B. Dealey 
avyard for music in 1952 when he 
was soloist with a the Dallas Sym* 
phony Orchestra." 

Cipango Club will host the press 
party and. reception'for the pianist, 
who wiH be soloist again Nov. 29 
with the Dallas orch. State Fair 
Music Hall (4,120.seats) is SRO at 
$5 top for diburn’s appearance. 


Grace M. Mayer 7 s Photo i 
Book Mirrors Beancoup 
Show Biz:, 1890-1910 

Theatre huffs, will have them¬ 
selves a down-front, on-the-Aisle 
seat when they pour over Grace M. 
Mayer’s “Once Upon a City” (Mac¬ 
millan; $15) a loving, tpuchingly- ‘ 
written account behind the cele¬ 
brated photographs made by Percy 
Byron from the period of 1890 to 
1910 in Gotham. Edward Steichen 
contributes the foreword. 

Byron presented -the Museum of 
the City of New York with some 
10,000 -negatiyes and prints. cover¬ 
ing one of the most colorful eras 
in the. city’s history and it was Miss 
Mayer, learned curator of prints at 
the museum, who provided the ap¬ 
propriate text for the Byron pic¬ 
tures. 

There are handsome photographs 
of many show biz personalities be¬ 
cause' Byron and his family pi¬ 
oneered in stage photography. The 
reader will come upon memorable 
prints of Mande; Adams, the Al¬ 
gerian Theatre in Coney Island-, 
(Continued wn page 701. 


jimmy Stroocks Pass Up 
B’way Preem to Watch TV 

For the first time in 45 years 
of playgoing, the James E. Stroocks 
will pass up tonight’s (Wed.) 
preem of “Drink to Me Only,” at 
the 54th Street Theatre, N. Y. 
They’ll stay at their Manhattan 
apartment'to watch the Patti Page 
show on NBC-TV. 

The angle is that the television 
stanza will carry a remote from the 
Brooks Costume Co. workroom and 
office in New York, the gimmick 
being that. the cast breaks into 
the establishment in search of 
outfits for a Halloween party. The 
sequence was taped last week. 

Stroock is president of Brooks 
and his wife, Bianca, is a costume 
designer. They’ve neyep r before 
missed a Broadway first-night, ex¬ 
cept when they were out -of town 
or because of illness. 


COMMERCIAL BY-PRODUCTS 


New Corporation Exploits Sammy 
v Baris Name-Fame 


Hollywood, Oct. 7. 

Samart Enterprises Inc., has 
been formed by Sammy Davis Jr., 
and Arthur Silber for purpose of 
handling entertainer’s activities 
outside .films, tv, recordings and 
niteries. 

First undertaking will be promo¬ 
tion of. a line of men’s sportswear 
designed by Davis, . - 


John O’Hara’s deal with 20th- 
Fox for his unpublished “From the 
Terrace” involves a $100,000 down- 
payment and a percentage of Hie 
film’s profits. Random House will 
publish the novel in December. 


By ROBERT J. LANDRY 

Not altogether revolution but 
partly evolution growing but of 
trends In other branches of enter¬ 
tainment, the New York Philhar¬ 
monic this season is innovating a 
Thursday “preview” of its Friday- 
Saturday-Sunday programs. But it 
is much more, than that. It is, for 
one thing, Leonard Bernstein’s in¬ 
formal “at home” to some 3,000 
‘friends.” It is the projection of 
sheer theatrical personality from 
the traditionally austere podium of 
longhair music. , 1 

Evolutionary interpretation was 
supported hy the new conductor, 
Broadway - conditioned Leonard 
Bernstein, displaying a superb gift 
of gab reminiscent of Deems Tay¬ 
lor in .his radio heyday. .When 
Bernstein dissects ^Charles- -Ives? 
Symphony No. 2 and traces its der¬ 
ivative passages on the piano, the 
reminder is of another yesteryear 
radio' personality, tune "detective^ 
Sigmund Spaeth. v 

Other comparisons arise during 
the evening. In his magnificentrat- 
homeness.and relaxation, Bern- : 
stein is kin to Perry Como and 
when he bursts into song- snatches, 
and piano bits he has traces of 
(Continued on page 70) 


STATEMENT REQUIRED BY THE 
ACT OF AUGUST"24th,*1912, AS'" 
AMENDED BY THE ACTS OF 
MARCH 3, 1933, AND JULY 2, 
1946, (Title 39, United States 
Code, Section 233,) showing; the 
ownership, management and circu¬ 
lation of Variety, published Week¬ 
ly at New York, N. Y., for Octo¬ 
ber 1, 1958. 

1. The names and addresses of 
the publisher editor, managing edi¬ 
tor, and business manager, are: 
Publisher—Variety, Inc., 154 W. 46th 

street, New York 36, N. Y. 

Editor—Abel Green, 154 West 46th 
street, New York 36; N. Y. 

Managing Editor—Robert J. Landry. 
154 West 46th. Street, New York 36, 
.N.- Y. - 

Business Manager—Harold Erichs, 
154 West 46th street. New York 36, 

N. Y. 

2. The owner is: Variety, Inc., 
154 We>t 46th St, New York 36, 

N. Y.; Syd Silverman, 154 West 46th 
St, New York 36, N. Y.; Estate of 
S : ~\e Silverman, 154 West 46th St, 
New York 36, N. Y.; Harold Erichs, 
154 West 40th St, New York 36, 

N. Y.; Abel Green, 154 West 46th 
St, New York 36, N. Y. 

2. The known bondholders, mort¬ 
gagees and other security holders 
owning or holding 1 per. cent; nr 
more of total amount of bonds, mort¬ 
gages, or other securities are: None.. 

4. Paragraphs 2 and 3 include, in 
cases where the - stockholder or ser 
curity holder appears upon the books' 
of the company as trustee or in any* 
other fiduciary relation, the name of 
the person or corporation for whom 
such trustee is acting; also the state¬ 
ments in the two paragraphs show 
the affiant’s full knowledge and be- . 
lief as to the circumstances and con¬ 
ditions under which stockholders 

j and security holders who do not 
appear upon the books of the com¬ 
pany as trustees, hold stock and 
securities in a capacity other than 
that of a bona fide owner. 

5. The average number of copies 
of each issue of this publication 
sold, or distributed through the mails 
or otherwise, to paid subscribers . 
during the 12 months preceding 

the date shown above was .... 

(This information is required from' 
daily, weekly, semi-weekly and tri¬ 
weekly newspapers only.) 

Harold Erichs, .. 

Business Manager. 
Sworn to and subscribed before 
me this 22nd day of September* 1958. 

Sidney Bernstein 
Notary' Public 31-0272825' 

(My commission expires March 30, 
1959) • • 








WMbMtdar, Oetofart, MSI 


HCnniH S 


GOVT. AS FILMS’ ‘PROTECTOR’? 


Property Master Sues Gregory Peck 




In N.Y. Action Cite Stranding in Madrid During 
‘Thieves’ Market’ Misadventure 


Shopping-Centres (And Free Parking) 
Stimulate Puerto Rican Theatres 


Production abroad may hav# Its 
risks and perils for the producer, 
but it’s no less risky for the in¬ 
dividual craftsmen who may be 
signed up to work overseas on 
American locationers. Fact, which 
might well serve as a warning to 
others, is underscored by a suit 
currently pending in N.Y. Supreme 
Court. 

It involves Samuel J. Martin, a 
property master, Jus wife Irene, 
and Gregory Peck. The human 
side of the story doesn’t fully 
emerge in the dry legal pipers. 

Back in 1956, Peck, then plan¬ 
ning to produce "Thieves Market” 
in Spain, signed an agreement with 
Martin to work on the picture 
in Madrid. Peck maintained he 
couldn’t pay the Martins their fare 
to Spain. However, he agreed to 
give Martin between five and six 
months of work, a living allowance, 
and a later accounting of expenses 
incurred, such^s the travel money. 
Jobs were scarce on the Coast, and. 
the Martins agreed to the deal, 
arriving In Madrid on December 
15, 1956. They found no prepara¬ 
tion for filming, but received the 
stipulated weekly pay for six 
weeks. 

After that, the pay stopped com¬ 
ing. To make matters worse, both 
Martins -fell sick. Finding them¬ 
selves penniless in Madrid, they 
fought unsuccessfully to reach 
either Peck or his coproducer Sy 
Bartlett. Eventually, someone from 
the United Artists office in Paris 
looked them up. Martin was in 
bed with a high fever. He was 
asked to sign a piece of paper, and 
did. This turned out to he a re¬ 
lease, with the amounts to be paid 
Martin left blank. 

Eventually, the h{artms made 
their way to Switzerland and from 
there, with the. help of the Amer¬ 
ican consul, they managed to get 
back to the States. Prior to leav¬ 
ing, they had sold their house and 
car in Hollywood' _ and they now 
live in New York! ’ 

"How could one human being do 
such i thing to another,” Mrs. 
Martin, a refugee from behind the 
Iron Curtain, asked last week. - 

I can’t get in to see Peck. 
Neither he nor any of his associ¬ 
ates ever came tc. see us, though 
they knew how ^desperate our 
situation was.” 

So now the Martins are suing. 
The amount involved—$6,550. 

20th Eager Tbat Stevens 
Direct Carder's Saga Of 
'Story’ as $10-Mil Film 

Hollywood Oct. 7. 

Twentieth-Fox reportedly is per¬ 
sistent in its attempt to sign 
George Stevens as producer-direc¬ 
tor of "The Greatest Story Ever 
Told.” Latest talks were held dur¬ 
ing prexy Spyros Skouras’ recent 
Coast' trip. Studio had named 
Philip Dunne to produce the late 
Fulton Oursler’s property when 
Stevens reportedly turned thumbs 
down on project, 

,It*s believed newest talks for 
Stevens to helm filmization of the 
story of Jesus Christ at least did 
not result in a completely negative 
reply from the film-maker, and it 
seems likely that further talks are 
on tap. It stevens is signed for pro¬ 
duction, deal probably would be a 
participation. 

‘ Twentieth has earmarked- $10,- 
000,000 for project, a budget said 
to be twice • that of any 'previous 
20th production. Studio’s purchase 
of the ttfme, which entails sharing 
of the profits by Oursler’s estate, 
may involve over $2,000,000. 


Paris Theatre, N. Y„ plushest -of 
the "east side” arties (it’s actually 
Just west of Fifth Ave.) marks its. 
*10th anni this week. 


Jack Warner’s Health 

Jack L. Warner due out of 
the ' Cannes hospital and It’s 

- a tossup whether he will rest’ 
at his Cap d’Antibes villa first 

- or fly home in a chartered 
plane soonest. 

His American medicos 
would like the latter but it 
depends on how his land legs 
function following the long 
hospitalization as result of the 
Cote d’Azur aute-- „ crackup 
which had him bedded for 
nearly two months. 

‘Eighth Day of Week’ Has 
Obstacles Aplenty; Is It 
A German or Polish Pic? 

"The Eighth Day of the Week,” 
a German.-Polish coproduction 
with a troubled history, continues 
to run an obstacle race. 

The film was made in Poland as 
a cooperative*venture between the 
Poles and the West Germans. When 
it was finished, and just before it 
was to go into the Cannes film 
festival this year, the Polish gov¬ 
ernment objected and the picture 
was pulled. Then it couldn’t find 
a distributor in Germany* 
Eventually, after its showing at 
-Venice, “Eighth Day” was- bought 
for the U. S. by a group headed by 
Gene Gutowsky. Question then 
arose whether it’d he wise tm re¬ 
lease the film in the German ver¬ 
sion, it being basically a. Polish 
story about a young married cou¬ 
ple trying to put a roof over their 
heads. It quickly developed that 
no print of the Polish version could 
be obtained. Meanwhile, the film 
ran into trouble with U. S. Cus¬ 
toms, censors on the side, which 
Remanded several deletions.. 

Gutowsky is currently mulling 
• the idea of taking the German ver- 
tion an cl dubbing it into Polish in 
Europe. Picture was originally shot 
in that language, with some of the 
closeups. done in two versions, i.e. 
Polish and German. Reasoning is 
that the Polish version-would hold 
considerable appeal to the large 
Polish-speaking population In the 
States. 

NOW THEY’RE-RAZING 
DRIVE-IN FOR SHOPS 

Calgary, Alta., Oct 7. 
The Chinook Drive-in Theatre 
here has been demolished to make 
way for an $8,000,000^ shopping 
centre.^ Built in 1949, it was the 
first drive-in theatre in Alberta. 

Fred Levitt, manager of the 
Chinook, has been transferred to 
the Cinema Park, succeeding Ken 
McGregor who has accepted an ex¬ 
ecutive post with the shopping cen¬ 
tre. 

No decision on a new location 
for the Chinook drive-in has been 
reached. F. H. Kershaw, general 
manager of Western Drive-in 
Theatres, Ltd., said one of. the 
plans being discussed is a com¬ 
bined indoor-outdoor theatre with 
a capacity of 5,000. 

HONG KONG SCIENCE FICTION 

Connan Freres Will Join Shaws 
In Filming There 

Hollywood, Oct. 7. 
Expanding to the Orient, Holly¬ 
wood producer team of Roger and 
Gene Corman will make untitled 
science fiction film in Hong Kong 
early next year In association with 
the Shaw Bros., of that British 
crown colony. Film'"reportedly will 
carry a budget of $1,000,000. 

Shooting starts after windup of 
Roger Corman’s production of 
Rider Haggard’s "She,” which he’ll 
-turn out in Australia with Ray 
Films for American International 
release. 


Uncle Sam is taking shape as the 
new father-image to “save” the 
American film industry. The situa¬ 
tion is partly confusing and some¬ 
what paradoxical in that the or¬ 
iginal exhibitors’ plea to the Dept, 
of Justice, and the subsequent di¬ 
vorcement of theatres from studios, 
is now often called the seed which 
which yielded today’s troubles 
(along with television) among the¬ 
atrical ' producer-distributors and, 
by direct spillover, among the film 
theatres themselves. 

The American film industry lives 
in and partly by constant dealings 
with the film industries of such 
countries as Britain, France;fTtaly, 
Germany, Japan, Mexico, Spain. In 
such countries Government. "sub¬ 
sidy’!. is either a main or an im¬ 
portant factor in film economics. 
Though traditionally "subsidy” has 
not had a good name in America, 
it is common enough, flourishing 
under euphemisms, though not in 
amusements. The shipping, avia¬ 
tion, natural gas, oil, wheat, meat 
and many another American indus¬ 
try thrive on direct or indirect 
handouts from the Federal Govern¬ 
ment. It Is this "me, too” idea that 
is beginning to take root among 
the sorely-beset showmen of the 
film industry in America. 

Hollywood film-makers, finding 
the present going rpugh, begin to 
think about government to pull 
its chestnuts out of the fire. Grad¬ 
ually, sentiment is being generated 
for some sort of governmental as¬ 
sistance, or "protection,” of the 
film-business. 

. It is as if, after years of looking 
down its nose at subsidized foreign 
industries, Hollywood had sudden¬ 
ly discovered that there are ways 
and means in which it might he 
able to make Washington share the 
economic responsibility. Fitch used 
is that the motion picture has 
grown into such an important me¬ 
dium of international communica¬ 
tion that it must be protected if it 
is to survive. 

Said Skouras 

Considered most significant were 
the remarks recently of 20th-Fox 
prez Spyros P. Skouras in The New 
-York Times. Noting that the busi¬ 
ness “must be protected,” he said 
the industry had to be "for the 
good of the country” -and the 
theatres should be helped by “pro¬ 
tective legislation and supported.” 

And he added: "Let me add that 
practically all the motion picture 
industries of the world are sub¬ 
sidized by their government .’* 

Heretofore^the U.S. film business 
always has jealously guarded its 
individualistic private enterprise 
approach. It now appears to he 
forced into the opposite direction; 
The voices that speak out in favor 
of "more government” aid—-which 
inevitably means greater govern¬ 
ment controls—are thoughtful ones, 
like Mark Robson, the director, 
who is also plugging that theme 
(see separate story). 

Today, more than 50% of the 
industry’s revenues come from 
abroad.. The income is vital. In¬ 
creasingly, Hollywood finds itself 
at a disadvantage by having to 
deal as an industry .with a foregin 
government. Some take the view 
that Washington should take a 
more active part in helping the 
film industry get a fair shake over¬ 
seas. In some isolated instances, 
tfiis has been done. 

The German film agreement, for 
Instance, was negotiated on a gov¬ 
ernmental level, though the State 
Dept., as a rule does not conclude 
commercial agreements of this 
type. Various, ambassadors have, 
from time to time, been asked to 
intercede for Hollywood with local 
governments when the going' got 
rough. 

* The film men know that (11 the 
going is going to get eyen rougher, 
and (2) the government is in a 
position to bring pressures, to bear 
which, normally, are not at the 
command of any single business. 

That the Government needs Hol¬ 
lywood is without question. It was 
brought home to the industry force¬ 
fully in connection with the Soviet- 
(Continued on page 21) 


‘10 CV at $30-Mil 

The hoxscore on "Ten Com¬ 
mandments” so far: 

Rentals now amount to $30,- 

000,000; 

Total rentals In -distinct 
view are in the neighborhood 
of $60,000,000 wprldwide. 

Brando’s Pennebaker’s 
London HQ for 3 Pix 
There in Next 4 Years 

Hollywood, Oct. 7. 
Marlon Brando’s Pennebaker 
Productions will set up a British 
subsidiary with headquarters in 
London, after first of year. Plans, 
according to exec producer George 
Glass, just returned from supervis¬ 
ing company’s “Shake Hands With 
the Devil,”- James Cagney starrer, 
in Ireland, call for a minimum of 
three features during next four 
years in Britain- or on Continent. 

Establishment of a British conn 
pany will enable Pennebaker to 
take advantage of financial bonuses, 
both taxwise and through the Eady 
Plan, Glass says. London, he notes, 
is rapidly becoming the crossroads, 
for international casting and new 
company will be able to effect 
more weddings of foreign and U.S. 
talent 

Cost of using foreign locations 
decreases proportionately, with 
their proximity to company’s home 
base. Glass points out, and there 
is a multiplicity of locations close 
to London fresh to American aud¬ 
iences. Glass is partnered as exec 
producers of Pennebaker with 
Walter Seltzer. 

^ 'ROYAL COMMANDED' 

Kaye, Goetz, Sinatra To London 
on Oct. 24 

Hollywood, Oct. 7. 
Royal Command Performance- 
bound, the Danny Kayes, William 
Goetzes and’ Frank Sinatra head^ 
for London Oct 24 to attend 
screening of “Me and the Colonel” 
Oct. 27. 

Queen Elizabeth and members 
of royal family are skedded to Jje 
present at showing, after which 
Kaye returns immediately to Hol¬ 
lywood for his Paramount starrer, 
"The Five Pennies.” 

Anthony Mann has drawn direc- 
: torial ehores on Universal’s 
"Spartacus.” 


► San Juan, Oct 7. 

Free parking space available at 
shopping centres is bringing about 
construction of the first new film 
theatres in Puerto Rico in 10 years. 
Plans for several new houses were 
disclosed yesterday* (Mon.) by 
Rafael Cobian who owns the ma¬ 
jority of the island’s theatres. All 
of the proposed cinemas will rise 
within shopping centres now being 
developed by the Ibec Realty Co. 
for Todos Supermarkets. 

Cobian said that his decision to 
locate the theatres in the shopping 
centres was partly due to the large 
amount of free parking space pa- 
irons would find next to the cine¬ 
mas. His first theatre will be at 
the 65th Infantry Shopping Cen¬ 
ter, a few blocks from the U. of 
Puerto Rico campus in suburban 
Rio Piedras. House, which will seat 
750 patrons, will cost $350,000 
completely equipped. 

Cobian, who’s negotiating to 
bring Cinerama films into the inir 
tial new theatre, revealed that the 
structure will be extra wide and 
semi-circular in shape to accommo¬ 
date the Cinerama screen. House 
will form part of the six and a half 
acre shopping centre which will 
also have a- bowling alley and 22 
stores. 

New theatres are now planned 
for two other Ibec shopping cen¬ 
tres in metropolitan San Juan, Co¬ 
bian disclosed. Ibec Realty is a 
subsidiary of the International 
Basic Economy Corp. of N. Y., 
which operates Todos Supermar¬ 
kets jn Puerto Rico. 

U’s Co-Production With 
Schneer; But‘Gulliver’ To 
. Be Columbia Release 

Hollywood, Oct. 7. 

Universal Pictures, which pre¬ 
viously filed a protest with the 
Motion Picture Assn. Title Regis¬ 
tration Bureau over Charles 
Schneer’s registration of “The 
Travels of Lemuel Gulliver” as in 
conflict with its own "Gulliver’s 
•Travels,” has closed a joint pro¬ 
duction deal *with indie. 

“Gulliver’s Travels,” based on 
the Jonathan Swift classic, will be 
co-produced by U and Schneer’s 
Morningside Productions for Col¬ 
umbia Pictures release. Filmed in 
new Dynamation process and Tech¬ 
nicolor, Jack Sher will direct From 
a script by himself, Arthur Ross 
and Sy Gomberg. Ray Harryhausen 
will handle special effects. 

Pic is skedded for early 1959 
camera work in Europe. 


Trade Mark Registered 

FOUfPED 1f05 by SIME SILVERMAN; Published Weekly by VARIETY, INC. 

Syd Silverman, President 

154 West 46th St.. New York 36. N. Y. JUdson 2-2700 
Hollywood 2C 

6404 Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood 9-1141 
Washington 4 

1202 National Press Building, STerling 3-5445 
Chicago 11 

612 No. Michigan Ave., DElaware 7-4984 
London WC2 

8 St. Martin's PL, Trafalgar Sq.. COVent Garden 0135 
SUBSCRIPTION Annual, $15; Foreign, S16; Single Copies, 35 Cents 

ABEL GREEN, Editor ! . 


INDEX 


Inside Music 


international 


. 70 

New Acts . 


. 78 

Night Club Reviews . 




.79 

. 67 

Pictures . 

. 3 

. 55 

Radio. 

..... 23 

. 19 

Radio Reviews .. 


. 42 

Record Reviews .... 


. 10 

Frank Scully.. 


Television.. 


. 71 

Television Reviews . 

.30 

. 77 

TV Films . 

.26 

. 51 

Vaudeville . 

.62 


DAILY VARIETY 

:-~ned in Hollywood by DaUy Variety i. v * 
$15 j ve;r Foreign 


























PICTURES 


'MSsnSf?- 


m 


uuinvjbik fStgsa.' 

September Boxoffice; 2-3-4 Spots Oneto j*" 


We&etHiqr, 'October O, 1959 


t <n • *r Mf 1 * o,<n» /i -* i_ j 

To Pacific, Gigi, Bg Country 


Variety’s regular weekly - 
boxoffice reports are summar¬ 
ized each month, retrospec¬ 
tively. Based on an average of 
24 key situations, the source 
data constitute an adequate 
sampling of current releases 
hut are not, of course, fully 
definite . An index of relative * 
grossing strength in the U.S.- 
Canada market, the monthly 
report does not pretend to ex¬ 
press total rentals. 

By MIKE WEAK 
The month of September found 
exhibitors cheered by some fresh 
releases but still annoyed by the 
, absence of enough potent pictures 
to go* around. The annual Labor 
Day weekend was stronger than 
it’s been in recent years, but trade 
started getting spotty towards the 
end of the month, a pattern pre¬ 
ys’:>nt in recent years. 

The Metro buster, “Cat on Hot 
Tin Roof,” paced the boxoffice 
sweepstakes for the month, mov¬ 
ing into No. 1 spot at the outset 
and never relinquishing the posi¬ 
tion through all of September. 
The Elizabeth Taylor-Burl Ives- 
Paul Newman opus, from the stage 
plav of V'e same name, showed 
more thru $1,800,000 gross in keys 
covered by Variety. 

“South Pacific” (20th) was a 
sturdy second-place winner. The 
pic showed better than $1,000,000 
gross on the month. It was No. 
1 at the wickets in August “Gigi” 
(M-G), which was fif h in -August 
pushed up to third position. 

“Big Country” (UA) was a close j 
fourth-place winner, being only I 
a step behind “Gigi.” “Reluctant 
Debutante” (M-G), which finished 
f^rth in ^receding month, 

wound up fifth in September,’mov¬ 
ing as high p*» c econi snot in 
weekly tabulations once. “Wind- 
- immer” (NT), which benefitted 
ircm a flock of additional book¬ 
ings last month, copped sixth 
nio.iey. 

“Around World in 80 Days” 
(UA) landed seven.h position as 
against sixth in August “The 
Hunters” (20th) finished eighth 
l . far irom sensational in 

m-.iy keys. “Search for Paradise” 
(Cinerama) eopped ninth place. It 
wrs seventh in August 
“Me and Colonel” (Col) wound 
up 10th, mainly on the draw of ( 
Danny Kaye. “Indiscreet” (WB), 
seccnd-plaoe winner in August 
landed 11th place. “Naked and 
Dead” (UA), which was third in 
the preceding month, rounds out 
t.e Golden Dozen for last mon.h. 
“Matchmaker” (Par) was the 
runner-up pic though it figured in 
Variety weekly totals only twice. 
‘Yankees’ Shapes Socko 
“Damn Yankees” (WB), which 
was second in the final week of 
•September, shapes as one of the 
biggest of the new blockbuster 
Continued on page 6) 

See No Paramount 
Special Divvy 

Although Paramount is collect¬ 
ing $10,000,000 a year for five 
years via its sale of the film back¬ 
log to a subsidiary of the Music 
Ccrp. of America, and operating 
earnings presently are holding 
steady, there’s to be no special 
dividend to stockholders, at least 
at this time. Extra income is being 
placed back Into operations or held 
In reserve. 

V.p. Paul Raiboum stated he 
thinks there would be a special 
payoff to stockholders if the com¬ 
pany trading price on'^the New 
York* Stock Exchange were to go 
up to around $60 per share. It’s 
now selling at the $44 level. 

Set Verne Earth-Core Kim 

Hollywood, Oct. 7, 
”bventieth-Fox and Joseph M. 

S '.nek Productions will jointly 
f T r e Jules Verne's “Journey To 
C or Of Fnrth.” 

-aales Brackett will produce 
as . "!gh budget science fiction 
feature. 


Sept Golden Dozen 

1. “Gat on Tin Roof” (M-G). 

2. “South Pacific” (20th). 

3. “Gigi” (M-G). * 

4. “Big Country” (UA). 

5. “Debutante” (M-G). 

6. “Windjammer” (NT). 

7. “Around World” (UA). 

8. “The Hunters” (20th). 

9. “Search Paradise” (Cine). 

10. “Me and Colonel” (Col). 

1L “Indiscreet” (WB). 

12. “Naked and Dead” (UA). 

It Was Christmas 
&AD the Boys-- 

Hollywood, Oct. 7. 

Majors currently planning $50,- 
000,000 “Christmas package” re¬ 
leases for important Yule trade, 
also get under yearend line for 
Academy Oscar consideration. 
Most majors will be scheduling at 
least two features, one pure en¬ 
tertainment, other for more seri¬ 
ous consideration. 

Twentieth has three upcomers, 
“Inn Of Sixth Happiness,” “Diary 
of Anne Frank,” “Roots of Heaven.” 
Columbia has "Seventh Voyage of 
Sinbad-,” “Last Hurrah” and “Bell, 
Book and Candle.” 

At United Artists, “I Want To 
Live,” “Separate Tables” and 
"Lonelyhearts” are pending. Me¬ 
tro has “Tom Thumb,” and, tenta¬ 
tively, “Some Came Running” and 
“The Journey.” 

Disney’s entry is "Sleeping 
Beauty.” Paramount will peg 
“Geisha Boy” and “The Bucca¬ 
neer.” 

Universal goes to market with 
“Perfect Furlough”; Warners with 
“Auntie Marne” and “Home Be¬ 
fore Dark.” ' 

John Sturges, director of “The 
Old Man and the Sea”: “Tech¬ 
nically this Is the sloppiest picture 
I’ve ever made, but I think it’s also 
the best” (Author Ernest Heming¬ 
way saw the film, liked it). 


Hollywood, Oct. 7. 

Associated Producers Inc., has 
been formed as new indie to pro¬ 
duce moderate budget features for 
20th-Fox release. George Warren, 
former production cost comptroller 
at Metro, heads firm, with'/William 
Magginetti ta act as production 
supervisor, Harry Spaulding as 
story editor. Robert L. Lippert 
will be liaison with '20th. 

First project is "Alaskan High¬ 
way.” In prospect are 14 to 16 
features hudgetted at $250,000 to 
$750,000 to expand 20th’s 1958-59 
program. Current planning is for 
20th to release one API film 
monthly starting in January. Sub- 
sid has seven other pix in prep- 
ping stage, four expected to roll in 
Cinemascope and color. ' 

Pact has been signed for Red 
Skelton to star in an untitled 
script by Gene Fowler Jr.. and 
LOtiis Vittes. 

Apparently there are no further 
plans this time for Regal Films, 
which has been providing 20th 
with lowbudgetters. Its president, 
Edumund Baumgarten, may launch 
own Indie film unit. 

Lewis Rachmil Set With 
Lou Costello’s "Bride’ 

Hollywood, Oct. 7. 

Lewis Rachmil, who checked out 
of Columbia Pictures producer 
berth Oct 1 after six years with 
company to enter indie work, will 
helm Lou Costello’s “The Secret 
Bride of Candy Rock,” for his first 
assignment. „ 

Indie, with Edward Sherman 
acting as exec producer, will go 
out under banner of Col, which also 
is, financing. Pic, scripted by Ro¬ 
land Barber and Lawrence Gold¬ 
man, is skedded to roll in early 
1959. 


Roger Lewis to Wed 


Roger Lewis, United Artists ad- 
pub director, and actress Lisa 
Daniels are to be married at Lewis’ 
sister’s home in Upper Montclair, 
N. -Y., Oct .19. Wedding trip is _off 
for a month, Lewis having' to 
await the return .to the States of 
UA v.p. Max E. Youngstein. 

Latter leaves shortly for a visit 
to Russia. 


National Boxoffice Survey 

Trade Continues Spotty; "Yankees’ No. 1, "Cat’ 2d, 
"Pacific’ 3d, ‘Defiant’ 4th, "Gigi’ 5th 


Biz is okay this session for the 
b.o. blockbusters. It is with the 
lesser produce that exhibitors are 
having their trouble, and ?s usual 
the afternoon competition from 
the World Series is being blamed 
for the sluggish pace, notably with 
more doubtful pix. Much cooler j 
weather in many sections of the 
country is providing little lift. 

“Damn Yankees” (WB), just get¬ 
ting started last stanza, is forging 
ahead to become champ at the 
wickets currently. Pic is playing 
in some 21 keys covered by 
Variety, It is closely followed by 
“Cat on Hot Tin Roof’ (M-G), 
which had been No. 1 for some 
five weeks in a row. 

“South Pacific (20th) again Is 
winding up third, same as last 
round. “Defiant Ones” (UA) is 
taking -fourth place, position it 
held a week ago. “Gigi” (M-G) is 
finishing fifth, unchanged from last 
stanza. 

“Big Country” (UA) is moving 
up to sixth spot. “Around. World in 
80 Days” (UA1 is capturing seventh 
position, an improvement over last 
week. “Search For Paradise” 
(Cinerama) is winding up eighth. 
“Windjammer”- (NT) 'is landing 
ninth place while “Me and Col¬ 
onel” (Col) rounds out the Top 10. 

“Matchmaker” (Par), “Reluctant 
Debutante” (M-G) and “White 
Wilderness” (BV) are the runner- 
up pix this session. First-named 
was in same category last round. 

“Barbarian and Geisha” (20th) 
shapes as a promising newcomer, 
being fine on opening week at 
N.Y. Paramount. “Onionhead” 


(WB), also new, is rated mild on 
its preem session at N.Y. Capitol. 
‘^Dunkirk” (M-G), also fairly new, 
is' big. in Toronto end so-so in 
FMUy. “Liane” (DCA) looks big 
in Chi while the reissue of “Street¬ 
car Named Desire” (20th) is rated 
good in Pitt and Louisville, but 
just fair in Frisco and okay in 
L.A. 

“Law and Disorder” (Cont), 
bright in Chi, looks okay in 
Frisco. “The Hunters” (20th) 
looms strong in Chi. “God Created 
Woman” (Kings) is bright in K.C. 

“La Parisienne” (UA) shapes 
fine in Detroit and good in Provi¬ 
dence. “Badlanders” (M-G); fairish 
in Boston, is rated fair in Portland. 

“Raw Wind in Eden” (U), big in 
Louisville, looks fair in N.Y. in 
third stanza. “South Seas'* Adven¬ 
ture” (Cinerama), hotsy in Chi, 
shapes lively in N.Y. and wham in 
LA. 

“Indiscreet”-(WB), long high on 
list, is great in Boston and trim in 
Toronto. “Harry "Black and Tiger” 
(20th) continues a disappointment 
this week. “Andy Hardy Comes 
Home” (M-G) is slow in Pitt. 

“Night Heaven Fell” (Kings) is 
good in Boston and Phiily. 
“Bridge on River Kwai” (Col), 
nearing end of its prolonged run 
at N.Y. Palace, still is good. 

(Complete Boxoffice Report?, on 
Pages 8-9) 

New York to L* A* 

Paul W. Benson 

Abe I'c'-'T '"T 

Robert . :*’tevens 

Lewis Ulfand 


New York Sound- Track 


Figure magic: 20th-Fox’s "Peyton Place” has hit over the $10,000,- 
000 mark domestically alone. On the foreign side, “God Created Wom¬ 
an,” starring Brigitte Bardot, >vill do well over $4,000,000 in the States. 
Producers Raoul Levy and Ray Ventura aren’t happy with the slow 
way their share is rolling in via Columbia Pictures. 

Herbert Bayard Swope Jr., whose producer pact at 20th-Fox winds 
the end of this month, may move over to the studio’s tv subsid, 
TCF-TV as exec producer-director. Negotiations between 20th and 
Swope are now under way. This would mean Swope as right-hand man 
of production chief Martin Manulis, with whom he worked in televi¬ 
sion years ago. 

Mrs. Lillian N. Gerard and Duncan McGregor hosting with a noon 
buffet Friday (10) at the Paris on occasion of the French cinema’s 
10th anni which is unveiling a new decor. 

Paul Muni returns to screen after five-year absence in FreG Kohler’s 
“The Last Angry Man,” at Columbia Pictures, for which Robert Ryan 
is being negotiated for co-star role . . . Dick Powell will shoot loca¬ 
tions for his 20th-Fox production, “No House Limit,” in. Havana . . . 
Nicholas Brodszky’s “The Queen in Love,” operetta written 20 years 
ago in Hungary before he came to America, will be produced as a 
screen feature by. Austrian producer Herman Millakovski (no relation 
to Lithuanian producer Herman Millakowsky) . . . 

James A. Lebenthal, whilqm Life mag Hollywood staffer, is in Man¬ 
hattan negotiating possible sale of his wordless documentary, “T Is 
For Tumbleweed” which stars Anne Lockhart, four-year-old grand¬ 
daughter of the late Gere Lockhart. Short played both Edinburgh 
Festival and Brussels Wor*! Fair this summer ... it carries a music 
track by jazz-cellist Fred Ki tx. ‘ 

Joe Pasternak will prodr ce “The Elsie Janls Story” for Metro, to 
be scripted by William Ludwig from original by Adela Rogers St. John 
and Ralph Wheelwright . . Victor Saville bought screen rights to 

“Legacy of a Spy,” Harpers novel by Henry S. Macfield . . . Mark 
Robson snagged producer-director chores on 20th-Fox’ “From the 
Terrace,” John O’Hara novel purchased last week . . . Aeneas Mac¬ 
kenzie will do screenplay on “King William the Conqueror,” set by 
Eyyan Productions with reputed budget of $5,000,000 . . . Edmund 
Grainger will seek U. S. Navy cooperation on bis updoming “Beneath 
the Arctic Circle,” story of an atomic sub . Rock Hudson and Doris 
Day will costar in “It’s That Time of Year,” bank-rolled-released by 
Universal and co-produced by Martin Melcher and Ross; Hunter. 

Foster Blake, former western division manager for Universal, set 
to succeed Irving Sochin as sales topper at Rank Film Distributors of 
America ... Michael B. Bromhead, newly appointed as the Lion In¬ 
ternational Filins rep in the U. £>., is engaged to a Maryland girl whom 
he met in London . . . Playwright Arthur Miller helping Edward L. 
Kingsley edit the French “Sorceress of Salem" for the States. . It’s 
based on his' play, “The Crucible” ... Sir Michael Balcon has two 
more films to do for Metro under the Ealing-MG pact. After that, 
he’ll seek another U. S. tie . . . Lopert Films will have to move out of 
its offices. Building’s been sold . . . While in N.Y. over the weekend. 
Theatre Owners of America prez Ernest G. Stellings took in the World 
Series . . . Trans-Lux v.p. Tom Rodgers in Europe . . . Janus Films* 
Swedish import, “The Seventh Seal,” due to open “cold” at the Paris 
.Theatre next week, i.e. without reference to the many honors won by 
the film abroad. Cy Harvey feels that plugging the awards tends to 
make some critics more critical. 

Leo Jaffe, Columbia v.p., and Mrs; Harry Cohn, wife of the late Qol 
president, have been elected to the board 'of Fico, holding company 
whose function is the acquisition of Col common stock ... Roxy Thea¬ 
tre, under the new Robert Rothafel management,, has booked a couple 
Of Col productions, “Last Hurrah” and “Seventh Voyage of Sinbad.” 

Richard F. Walsh, president of IATSE and chairman of the Na¬ 
tional AFL-CIO Safety Committee, fellow-speaker with Gov. Averell 
Harriman and Norman R. Baker, president of ther New York State So¬ 
ciety of Newspaper Editors, at a special' dinner meeting in the Shera¬ 
ton-Ten Eyck Hotel, Albany last night (Tues.). 

All film festivals are phony, their appeal and utility has evaporated, 
per Francois Truffaut, • critic of the Paris highbrow weeky, Arts ... 
Once a child film actress in France, now a concert pianist, Vivian 
Florian recently entered the U. S. as an immigrant with two objec¬ 
tives: citizenship and Carnegie HalL She originates in Poland, is now 
29. 

Jerry Wajd had until Monday tb exercise his $7,500 option on Hol¬ 
lywood columnist Sheilah Graham’s memoir, “The Beloved Infidel” 
(Henry Holt & Co.), so picked it up for $100,000, plus 5% of the net 
profits, last week. Gerold Frank, who collabed on the Lillian Roth and 
Diana Barrymore autobiogs, gets equal hilling (and profits) with Miss 
Graham. Saga dwells on the last days of F, Scott Fitxgerald with whom 
she was romantically linked. ( 

Public jelationist, age 50, is* hero of novel, “The Birthday Boy ” 
which Scribner’s will bring out next spring. Author is Holiday’s ex¬ 
associate ed, A1 Hine. Same house will issue a British screenwriter’s 
novel of Balkan derring-do. ‘The Achilles Affair”-—meaning Berkley 
Mather , . . Peter Heggie has returned after some years to the ex¬ 
ecutive secretariat of the Authors League of America, he and Mills Ten 
Eyck trio under -veteran Liose Sillcox. Oldtimers of show biz will re-' 
member Heggie’s- late father, the legit and screen actor, O. P. Heggie. - 

Fleming Museum Assn, in Burlington, Vt has lined up oldies for re¬ 
vival, to wit: Oct. 15, Frank Capra’s “Lost Horizons,” starring Ronald 
Cobnut; Nov. 19, five art history films; Jan. 7, Capra’s "Mr. Deeds 
Goes to Town,” with Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur; March 11, “Miss 
Julie,” 1951 Swedish award winner at Cannes and Berlin film festivals, 
starring Anita Bjork. 


Europe to N. Y. 

Julian Bream 
Maria Callas 
Mony Daisies 
Olive Duquette 
Elizabeth Eustis 
Clifton Fadiman 
Victor Mature 
Jack Mills 
Maurice Silverstein 
Alida Valli 
, Diana Wynyard 
Helmut Zacharias 

New York to Europe 

Watson Barrett 
Alexander H. Cohen 
Jean DalrympTe 
Bonita Granville 
Vera Lynn 
Marv Minoff 
Anthony Parella 
Hildy Parks 
Hazard S. Reeves 
Bob Russell 
. David' O. Selznick 
Howard Smith 


L. AMo N. Y. 

Pier Angeli 
William Bendlx 
Samuel J. Briskin 
Frank Capra 
Charles K. Feldman 
Joseph Friedman 
Derek Glynne 
Jack Gordean 
Gypsy Rose Lee 
June Havoc 
Milt Hoffman 
Burl Ives 
Robert L. Jacks 
Sam Marx 
Mort.Meyerson 
Patti Paige 
Lindsley Parsons 
Jerry -Pickman 
Roger Pryor 
Milton R. Rackmil 
Edward Saxe 
Ray Stark 
Herb Steinberg 
Malcolm Stuart 
Uiniitra Tiomkin 
Spencer TraCy 
Jack M. Warner 


Wednesday, October 8, 195ft 


P^RfETr 


PICTURES 


5 


SILENTS: GOOD ENUF FOR TV? 



Black Cloud of Television Thickens 


Theapies’ Hade for Television 
Influence Paramount s Ideas 

Paramount Is taking its cues 4 —-:-^- 


from television, as concerns film- 
making economy. This picture 


corporation, while investing a mini¬ 
mum of $30,000,900 in 20 new pro-j 
ductions, is underway with a studio 
cost - cutting program fashioned 
after tv methods. 

Specifically, Par is Impressed 
with the way video producers can 
turn out a half-hour film at 
amounts in the area of $35,000 
whereas a major studio spends 
$10,000 to $20,000 per single min¬ 
ute of a feature. 

The comparison is not a fully 
valid one, of course. The produc¬ 
tion values and talent involved in 
a Hollywood feature of major sta¬ 
ture outdistance the routine tv 
entry. 

But there is nonetheless a wide 
area for economy, as demonstrated 
by the tv practitioners, and this 
centers on shooting time. Par has 
it figured that a film’s before-the- 
cameras schedule can be cut sub¬ 
stantially by way of more pre- 
production planning and rehear¬ 
sals. Numerous extra takes for a 
scene must be eliminated, it has 
been decreed, because these sim¬ 
ply add too much to negative costs 
unnecessarily. 

Company has had the policy of 
cutting shooting skeds in effect for 
some time although, naturally, 
there have been no public state¬ 
ments about its adoption. 

And there has been a payoff. 
Par’s gross business so far this 
year is under last year’s level but 
net earnings are holding up well. 
This is attributable, in part, at least, 
to thejximming of production ex¬ 
penditures. 


Turkey Eases Its 
Rules, Oughta Aid 
tf. S. Film Cos. 

With Leo Hochstetter on the 
grounds, the Turkish government 
last week agreed ta the establish¬ 
ment of non-resident bank accounts 
by the major film companies in 
Turkey. Move goes a long way by 
untangling the complicated situa¬ 
tion in which the Americans have 
found themselves in that country. 

Hochstetter, the Motion Picture 
Export Assn, rep in West Germany, 
was sent to Turkey from his Frank¬ 
furt headquarters. He had spent 
several years in the country earlier, 
working as a journalist. Turkey 
actually belongs In the domain of 
Frank Gervasi, MPEA’s Mediter- 
rancean rep, but Gervasi was busy 
with Italy and Spain at the 
moment. 

Yanks don’t distribute for them- j 
selves in Turkey but sell their 
product outright to local Turkish' 
distributors. Turkey is one of the 
countries covered by the Interna¬ 
tional Media Guarantee Program 
of the U. S. State Dept., which 
means that the U. S. government 
picks up local currency up to $500,- 
000 and pays out the equivalent in 
dollars in New York. 

This arrangement, top, was 
fouled up, and Hochstetter has 
managed to get these funds flow¬ 
ing again. It's earnings over and 
above the $500,000 that wiU go in¬ 
to the non-resident accounts from 
where unblocking will be easier. 
Up to now, the local agents paid 
cash on picking up the filpis from 
Turkish customs. That money was 
deposited in the central bank, 
where It accrued. 

With the funds being deposited 
In non-resident accounts, each com¬ 
pany is now in a better position to 
use these funds or find ways of re¬ 
mitting them. 


'SEA BEAST'. TITLE SWAP 


Parsons Trades WB His ‘Rio Bravo* 
Tag For It 


Hollywood, Oct. 7. 

Indie producer Lindsley Parsons 
will bring “The Sea Beast” to the 
screen. It’s a moderq whaling 
story, from an original by Jack De- 
Witt. Will roll next spring in the 
Caribbean. 

Parsons has Barry Sullivan in 
mind for star role and will discuss 
matter with actor during his trip 
to N. Y. later this month. 

Warners has owned title since 
silent days, when John Barrymore 
made it first in non-talkie form, 
then with sound. Parsons acquired 
title via an ^exchange with WB, sur¬ 
rendering his own “Rio Bravo.” 


Cohunbia Fattens 
Its Spanish Lingo 
Line Via Mexico 

| To supplement its insufficient 
supply of Spanish-language pic¬ 
tures for the American market, Co¬ 
lumbia Pictures has closed a deal 
with a new, exhibitor-owned pro¬ 
duction company in Mexico. It 
assures Col of 30 new habla Es- 
pagnol features. 

Columbia maintains a production 
[ program of its own in Mexico, but 
I it runs to only about a dozen films 
per year. The company wants to 
release at least 24 a year to Span- 
ish-language houses in the States. 

There are two other outfits re¬ 
leasing Mexican films—Azteca and 
Clasa-Mohme. However, both of 
these are now jointly owned by 
the Mexican government-controlled 
Cimex outfit, whieh has bought out 
Gustav Mohme, vet producer and 
distributor of Mexican films in the 
States, It's understood that Mohme 
bowed out of the company Sept. 
26 under the terms of a deal made 
two years ago. Eventual merger 
of Azteca and Clasa-Mohme is in 
the works. 

New Mexican production group 
channelling films to Columbia in¬ 
cludes Gabriel Alarcon of Mexico, 
Carlos Plaza Izquierdo of Venezu¬ 
ela, and Enrique. Ponca of Colum¬ 
bia. All are major exhibitors in 
their countries and obtain the 
rights for their productions to sev¬ 
eral areas apart from their home¬ 
lands. ' 

As for Columbia, it’s not a part¬ 
ner, but it puts up advance monies 
on the productions in return for 
the U. S. rights. Three films al¬ 
ready have been delivered, two 
more are ready, and one is cur¬ 
rently planned. It’s figured the 
new outfit may be able to turn out 
16 to 20 films a year, though 30 is 
the goal. The films will be released 
by Col’s Mexican films division 
under Donald McConville. 


O’DONNELL TOA SPIELER, 
KERASOTES NEXT HEAD? 

Robert J. O’Donnell of the Texas 
Interstate circuit will be keynote 
speaker at the Theatre Owners of 
America convention in Miami 
which starts on Oct. 21. It’ll be the 
first important order of business 
after Boston's Samuel Pinanskl 
calls the meeting to order that day. 

After O'Donnell’s speech, retir¬ 
ing president Ernest G. Stellings 
will report on the prior day's board 
of directors and executive commit¬ 
tee meetings. It is expected that 
Stellings will be succeeded as TO A 
president by George G. Kerasotes 
of Springfield Ill. 


For Europe’s Cinema Operators; 
Now Have 12,792,805 Video Sets 


HECTIC ITU’ 

Paramount is underway with tests 
of its silent pictures with the view, 
of peddling the vintage backlog, 
somewhat updated, to television. 

Company has 1,500 pre-sound 
pictures in its vaults and most of 
the prints are in good condition. 
Job now at hand is to re-fashion 
them so as to make them in line, 
with modern standards. Specifically 
being worked on by technicians 
are a comedy, a meller and a 
straight drama. 

It’s been concluded already .that 
the oldtime titles would’t be ade¬ 
quate for tv. As a substitute Par 
is trying the use of off-screeri nar¬ 
ration. It’s felt dubbing would be 
impractical. 

Another problem being tackled 
is that of timing. The ancient 
“flickers” unspooled quickly in 
comparison with today’s features 
and the performers appear ges¬ 
ticulating so wildly that in many 
instances they-cannot be accepted 
seriously. Par has to calm them 
down. 

There’s been no tipoff on ac¬ 
complishments so far in terms of 
making the oldies presentable. But 
it is known that Par officials are 
high oh the prospects' “You’ll find 
some surprises,” commented Paul 
Raibourn, v.p. 

If there’s any degree of success 
the trade repercussions, obviously 
will be widespread. Prints of pre- 
talkers-are in abundance—and just 
gathering dust—at various of the 
major companies and it’s a cinch 
these outfits wouldn’t hesitate to 
convert the . otherwise worthless 
material into cash if it’s feasible. 
In any case the Par experiments 
are being closely watched 

Incidentally, Par’s backlog sale 
to a subsidiary of Music Corp. of 
America covered only the pre-1948 
sound pictures; the silents were 
excluded. 

Stellings Sees Key 
TOA Plans In Lap 
Of Justice Dept. 

The Federal Government, spe¬ 
cifically Justice , is the key to two 
pressing exhibitor problems—(1) 
the sale of films to television and 
(2) the restitution of showcases to 
the producer-distributors, Ernest 
G. Stellings, the outgoing Theatre 
Owners of America president, said 
in N. Y. yesterday (Tues). 

He has hopes that the TOA con¬ 
vention in Miami later this month 
will adopt the “trust” fund project, 
under which theatremen would 
actually buy up the companies’ 
post-’48 films to keep them from 
going to television. One of the keys 
to any such venture is Justice Dept* 
approval for the major circuits to 
join in the move. There appears 
to be little doubt that the Circuits 
will get the greenlight to partici¬ 
pate, Stellings opined. 

As for the modification of the. 
decree to allow theatre ownership 
by the producer-distributors, Stel¬ 
lings appeared less sanguine, 
though he believed this was neces¬ 
sary to encourage greater volume 
in production. “We cannot, as: 
TOA, reopen the decree issue with 
the courts,” he said- “Only the 
Justice Dept, can do that, or else 
one of the parties to the suit. TOA 
was involved only as a friend of 
the court,” 

So far, said Stellings, “we have 
had nothing but discouragement 
from the Justice Department, but 
we’re still hoping that a way can 
.be found to reexamine the situa¬ 
tion.” 

The TOA chief exec said the 
question, of buying up the com¬ 
panies’ post-’48* films was the major 
issue facing exhibition today. “If 
they sell those films to tv, we’re 
through,” he maintained flatly. 
“The whole business would 'be 
gone.” 


ALL-AROUND-THE-TOWN 


Again Open Brigitte Bardot That 
Way in N. Y. 


Pattern of dual cast and west- 
side openings for foreign films in 
Manhattan continues with the Bri¬ 
gitte Bardot starrer, "The Night 
Heaven Fell.” Picture bows Oct. 
2l at the Qdeon on Broadway and 
the Fine Arts on the east side. 

Kingsley-International, the dis¬ 
tributor, is booking the English 
version into the Odeon and the sub¬ 
titled French version into the Fine 
Arts. 


Local 47 Charges 
New Guild Unduly 
'In’At Studios 

Hollywood, Oct. 7. 

American Federation of Musi¬ 
cians, now under a new president, 
Herman D. Kenin, is moving to un¬ 
horse the rebels in the film studios 
here. Some 500 tooters loyal to the 
A.F.M: have filed a petition with 
the National Labor Relations Board 
requesting another secret ballot 
test. This is aimed at ending a cru¬ 
cial clause in the collective bar-1 
gaining authorization vested with 
the Musicians Guild of America 
for a period 39 months under the 
earlier showdown. 

Should this latest * tactic be 
crowned with success the Guild 
would be “de-authorized.” Under 
its (the Guild’s) current advan¬ 
tages the studios are required, by 
contract stipulation, to require any i 
musician to join the Guild within j 
30 days of employmeftt at a major] 
studio. 

With dues - paying members of 
the international forced to be also ] 
in the Guild, or no jobs, the Kenin i 
regime is firing a series of “unfair 
practices” charges against the vari¬ 
ous employers. Newcomer union 
was formed over dissatisfaction 
with the former Petrillo regime,; 
and its alleged lack of zeal for 
Hollywood musicians’ special prob¬ 
lems. 

A.F.M. Is currently expressing 
a “discrimination” allegation 
against 20th-Fox in particular for 
that lot’s "favoring” of musicians 
who belong to the splinter Guild 
and bias against the old Local 47. 

SPAIN HELPS‘SHEBA’ 
PRODUCERS CUT COSTS 

Saragossa, Sept. 30. 

Hollywood is finding Spanish 
government cooperation an attrac¬ 
tive budget and production item. 
Importance of* official aid is il¬ 
lustrated here on the Saragossa 
wastes where King Vidor is direct¬ 
ing battle sequences for the Ed¬ 
ward Small-Ted Richmond biblical 
spectacle, “Solomon and Sheba.” 

Several Spanish Army regi¬ 
ments have been mobilized to pro¬ 
vide over 2,000 extras and squad- 
Tons of cavalry. And the bibilical 
battles are being re-enacted on an 
abandoned military ' reservation 
where the "bleak, sandy terrain of¬ 
fers compatible identification with 
the George Bruce screenplay back¬ 
grounds, only 15 minutes from the 
main location base in Saragossa. 

Entire “Solmon and Sheba” mili¬ 
tary assistance program is coordi¬ 
nated by Maj. Martin Pozuelo, 
chief of staff officer assigned by 
the Spanish Army to King Vidor 
as rpilitary adviser. Under him, 
are 150 regimental officers and 
non-coms, fully briefed on Vidor’s 
war strategy. 


With the experience in the U. S, 
as a convenient handwriting-on- 
the-wall, European film industries 
can look to rapidly rising compe¬ 
tition from television. The latest 
figures from countries connected 
within the Eurovision Video net¬ 
work show a total of 12.792,805 re¬ 
ceivers, an increase of close to 
2,000,000 during the first half of 
1958 alone. 

According to statistics published 
in the German trade publication, 
Film-Echo, the number of receivers 
in Europe today stands at around 
16,000,000, of which some 3,400,- 
000 are in Russia and the Com¬ 
munist countries. 

As of July 1, ’58, Britain had 8,- 
300,000 sets, West Germany 1,- 
677,000, Italy 900,000, France 860,- 
000, Belgium 370,000, Holland 
315,000, Denmark 157,000, Swed¬ 
en 147,000, Switzerland 41,000 and 
Austria 32,000. At the first of the 
year, the total reached in the Eu¬ 
rovision web was 10,857,194 sets. 

European tv is generally state- 
operated and its programming is 
limited, However, it is expanding 
its service hours and the number 
of programs shown on the Euro¬ 
pean web are being increased. 
While Britain already has commer¬ 
cial tv, other important markets, 
like Germany, are on the brink of 
getting it. 


Prudential Loans 
Disney $5-Mil On 
Wo 1973 Note 

Hollywood, Oct. 7. 

New Working capital, via a loan 
of $5,000,000 from Prudential In¬ 
surance Co. of America, has been 
secured by Walt Disney Produc¬ 
tions, Coin, for which firm gave 
5sinking fund notes due Sept. 
15, 1973, also will be used to re¬ 
duce bank loans previously' in¬ 
curred. 

Under its new format of ex¬ 
panded operations, production com¬ 
pany has earmarked a record 
$3,500,000 to promote five Buena 
Vista releases between now and 
through next summer, according to 
prexy Roy O. Disney. Sked com¬ 
prises the largest release program 
in company history and reps a neg¬ 
ative cost of $13,000,000. 

Films to come under the huge 
allocation include “Sleeping 
Beauty,” “Tonka,” “The Shaggy 
Dog,” “Darby O’Gill and the Little 
People” and “Third Man on the 
Mountain.” 

. Machinery for this outlay will 
be activated this week by BV, when 
execs return to their home bases 
from a week of confabs at studio. 


LOU WIETHE CHARGES 
' IA TEATHERBEDDING’ 

• Cincinnati, Oct. 7. 
Lou Wiethe, who closed his 
swank suburban Valley Theatre 
last week over a labor dispute, 
threatens to go non-union unless 
“a fair settlement” is reached. Ac¬ 
tion halted run of 20th’s “South 
Pacific” in the 23d week. 

His explanation of the shuttering 
on the theatre’s marquee' reads: 
"Featherbedding by the operators 
closed this theatre ” 

Wiethe asked for a reduction of 
personnel, stating that business 
dipped 25% since Labor Day. He 
claimed that the IATSE stagehands 
and ticket sellers “offered relief,” 
but the IATSE boothman refused 
to cut down from four men. 

William Lynn, business agent of 
Local 327-A, Moving Picture Oper¬ 
ators* Union, said Wiethe’s demand 
would violate the union’s policy of 
long standing on road show jobs. 


6 


FIUM REVIEWS 




Wednesday, October , 8y 1958 


The Perfect Fwrlough 

(C’SCOPE—COLOR 


Well-paced comedy with fair- 
enouzh merriment and Tony 
Curtis and Janet Leigh to pro¬ 
vide sufficient boxoffice re¬ 
turns. * 


Universal release of Robert Arthur pro¬ 
duction. Stars Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, 
Keenan Wynn, Linda Cristal, Elaine 
Stritch; features Marcel Dalia, Les Tre- 
m n .jne, Jay Novello. Directed by Blake 
Edwards. Screenplay, Stanley Shapiro; 
camera (Eastman Color), Philip Lathrop; 
editor, Milton Carruth; music, Frank 
Skinner. Previewed at RKO 8Sth Street 
Theatre, N.Y., Sept. 30, ’58. Running time, 
93 MINS. 


Paul Hodges . Tony Curtis 

Vicki Loren . Janet Leigh 

Harvey Franklin ......... Keenan Wynn 

Sandra Roca .Linda Cristal 

Liz Baker . Elaine Stritch 

Henri . Marcel Dalio 

Col. Leland. ... Les Tremayne 

Rene . Jay Novello 

Major Collins. King Donovan 

M.P. No. 1 .Gordon Jones 

Pvt. Brewer . Alvy Moore 

French Nurse . Lilyan Chauvin 

S-Tt. Nickles.Troy Donahue 

M.P. No. 2 . Dick Crockett 

French Doctor.Eugene Borden 

Asst. Hotel Manager....James Lanphier 


Basic story is lacking in sub¬ 
stance and it’s difficult to figure 
the sense behind the casting of 
Janet Leigh as a U.S. Army psy¬ 
chologist. But, then, "Perfect Fur¬ 
lough” is done up strictly for 
laughs and, for those who are qn 
an anything-goes kind of basis, it 
stacks up well enough. 

' Writer .Stanley Shapiro, in plot¬ 
ting the farce, followed obvious 
lines. Group of soldiers in an Arctic 
outpost are in dire need of morale, 
uplifting. They have nothing but' 
women on their minds and day¬ 
dream about orotic opportunities. 

Miss Leigh provides what’s in¬ 
tended to be the solution. One of 
the group is to be given the "per¬ 
fect furlough” and the others are 
to experience it vicariously. Tony 
Curtis, who’s a sharp operator with 
a big reputation for taking a fancy 
to femmes, cops the leave. He 
chooses three weeks in Paris with 
nifty looker film star Linda Cristal. 
Miss Leigh goes along to supervise 
and it’s only a matter of time be¬ 
fore Miss Leigh and Curtis team up 
at the altar. 

While the script’s turns can 
easily be guessed in advance there 
are within its framework some 
amusing situations. Too, director 
B’ake Edwards keeDs the broad 
action going 'at a pood clip and 
Robert Arthur has wrapped up Ms 
production handsomelv in Cinema¬ 
scope an( i Eastman Color. 

The overa’l result is a fair- 
enough boxoffice contender with 
Curtis’ name providing an extra 
lift. 

Curtis plavs comedy well, play¬ 
ing it broadly (there’s not much 
subtlety in the screenplay) and 
agreeably. Miss Lei^h, as noted, is 
tha psychologist; this profession 
rarely yields such attractive prac- 
tit’oners. 


rn W^nn is Miss Cristal’s 
manager and comes.off as a stereo¬ 
typed zany caricature. Elaine 
Stritch does handily as a hard- 
b'p'Ied, cynical pressagent. Marcel 
Ba’io, Les Tremayne and Jay 
Novello work competently in fea- 
ture-billhig spots and King Dono¬ 
van, as the perplexed army major 
In charge of Curtis* expedition to 
Paris is an amusing all the way. 

Miss Cristal as the film star who 
keeps her marriage a secret until 
she becomes pregnant <a situation 
for which Curtis at first is held 
responsible) looks and .plays her 
part in appealing fashion. 

Philip Lathrop’s camera work is 
sharp, editing is tight enough and 
music, editing and technical credits 
all are good. Gene. 


•Toy Ride 


No names, but exceptionally 
well-done suspense item. 


Hollywood, Oct. 3. 

Allied Artists release of Ben Schwalb 
production. Stars Rad Fulton, Ann Doran, 
Re"is Tdomey. Directed by Edward 
Bernds. Screenplay, Christopher Knopf; 
fr^m a story by C. B. Gilford; camera, 
Carl Guthrie; music. Marlin Sidles; editor, 
Vr» 'i-m Austin. Previewed at the studio. 
Sept. 30, 1958. Runping time, 65 MINS. 

. Rad Fulton 

“V 1 *. Ann Doran 

.Regis Toomey 

Arnie . Nicholas King 

il n .T e *.Robert Levin 

..-.Jim Bridges 

Barrett. Roy Engel 

Taverner . Robert Colbert 

Ellensten...Robert Anderson 


“Joy Ride” is a tough and often 
terrifying melodrama of juveniles 
underprivileged in mind only who 
set out to demoralize arid dominate 
an older man for no apparent rea¬ 
son except “kicks.” The Ben 
Schwalb production for Allied 
Artists, skillfully directed by Ed¬ 
ward Bernds, is too modest in 
structure to attract much attention, 
but it is absorbing screen enter¬ 
tainment and will be no disappoint¬ 
ment to the customers. Slated for 


double-bills, it will be a strong 
entry in this class. jl 

The plot of Christopher Knopf’s 
screenplay, based oir a story by 
C. B. Gilford, is very simple. A 
quartet of teen-agers, Rad FifltoiL 
Nicholas King, Jim Bridges and 
Robert Levin, spot a sports car 
owned by Regis Toomey. They want 
a ride in it. Sensing Toomey’s un¬ 
certainty to their request, and mis¬ 
taking his natural kindness as fear, 
they launch a campaign of sys¬ 
tematic intimidation and mounting 
ferocity. The “Joy Ride” now be¬ 
comes secondary to their immature 
desire to conquer the car’s owner, 
symbol of authority and adulthood. 
Their campaign culminates when 
they openly invade Toomey's home 
while he is away and terrorize his 
wife, Ann Doran, into a heart at¬ 
tack. 

Basically, of course, this kind of 
story is similar to “The Desperate 
Hours,” and others of that genre. 
But this does not mitigate against 
its power to absorb the spectator. 
Knopf’s screenplay does, not 
neglect the reasons for the youths’ 
behavior and it attempts an ending 
along contemporary sociological 
lrnps in which Toomey as shown 
as almost superhumanly tolerant 
and understanding of the situation. 
(He gets the charges against three 
of the boys reduced, conscious that 
prison terms may not be the an¬ 
swer to. their problem.) 

Toomey performs with dignity 
and authority and Miss Doran, as 
the wife, is a fine study in muted 
hysteria. The young men, Fulton, 
King, Bridges and Levin, are uni¬ 
formly good, and other cast mem¬ 
bers, * Roy Engle, Robert Colbert 
and Robert Anderson give solid 
support. 

All aspects of the production re¬ 
spond to Bernds’ incisive direction, 
including the photography .of Carl 
Guthrie, Marlin Skiles’ imagina¬ 
tively-used music, and the expertly 
paced editing by William Austin. 


The Man Unstairs 

(BRITISH) 


Modest, well-made little 
thriller; should be useful en¬ 
tertainment in average bowses. 


London, Sept 30. 

British Lion release, of an ACT (Robert 
Dunbar) production. Stars Richard Atten¬ 
borough, Bernard Lee, Doiiald Houston, 
Dorothy Alison. Directed by Dorr Chaffey. 
Screenplay, Alun Falconer; camera, Ger¬ 
ald Mas si e-Collier; editor, John Trnmper. 
At Hammer Theatre, London.' Running 
time, 48 MINS. 


The Man_... 

Inspector .. 

Sanderson. 

Mrs. Barnes. 

Nicholas . 

Eunice ... 

Pollen.. 

Helen . 

Mrs. Lawrence .. 
Miss Acres 
P. C. Stevens .. 
Injured Sergeant. 
Mr. Barnes 
Johnny . ... 

Superintendent .. 

Dulcie . 

Sgt. Morris . 


Richard Attenborongh 

. Bernard Lee 

..Donald Houston 

... Dorothy Alison 

..... Charles Houston 
.... Maureen Connell 
..... Kenneth Griffith 

. Virginia Maskell 

....... Patricia Jessel 

..... Amy Dalby 

........ Edward Judd 

.......Patrick Jordan 

. Alfred Burke 

....... David Griffith 

. Walter Hudd 

. Polly Clark 

.Graham Stewart 


“The Man Upstairs” is a com¬ 
petently made, often tense, little 
drama, which comes off well within 
its own modest terms. But it is 
doubtful if many people will be 
happy to pay out good money to 
see the kind of pic which could 
have been handled equally well on 
television. This seems no way to 
combat the small screen. Starring 
several popular British players, it 
should be a useful booking for 
most British houses, but it is not 
important enough to arouse much 
interest in the U.S. 

The story has Richard. Atten¬ 
borough as a scientist who has 
been involved in a laboratory ac¬ 
cident in which his fiancee’s 
brother has been killed. Burdened 
with a sense of guilt, he has 
changed his name and is living in 
a seedy lodging house. The film 
concerns one night in his life. His 
peculiar behaviour causes one of 
the guests to call the police. Atten¬ 
borough locks himself in his room 
and the story line concerns the re¬ 
actions of the various guests to the 
situation and the clash between an 
intolerant police officer and a local 
mental welfare officer. 

Don Chaffey’s direction Is 
straightforward and brings out 
several good performances, notahly 
by Attenborough, in a difficult role. 
Kenneth Griffith is a fussy busy¬ 
body, Dorothy Allison an under¬ 
standing housewife and Donald 
Houston the welfare officer, all 
nice portrayals. Bernard Lee, as 
the cop also is good. 

Virginia Maskell also shows con¬ 
siderable promise in a tiny part as 
Attenborough’s girl friend. Dialog 
is sometimes a trifle too literary 
and the acting taking place in such 
cramped circumstances makes it 
difficult for the requisite tension 
to be unflagging. But the atmos¬ 
phere of fear and suspicion has 
been xcellentiy created md 
bandied. Rich, j 


Women aid 
.Owns 

(COLOR; C’SCOPE) 

Suspense oater of routine in¬ 
terest and prospect. 


Hollywood, Sept. 5. 

Universal release' of a Hpwje Horwitz 
production. Stars Jock Mahoney, Kim 
Hunter, Tim Hovey; costars Gene Evans, 
Tom Drake, Lon Chaney, William Camp¬ 
bell, Jeffrey Stone, James Gleason, Judy 
Meredith. Directed by Richard H. Bart¬ 
lett. Screenplay, Montgomery Pittman; 
camera (Eastman color), Philip Lathrop; 
music supervisor, Joseph. Gershensoh; 
editor, Patrick McCormack. Previewed at 
the ctn^io. Sept. 4, ’58. Running time, 
80 MINS. 

Hogan .,., Jock Mahoney 

Mary Kingman . Kim Hunter 

Davey Kingman . Tim Hovey 

Sheriff Crowley. Gene Evans 

Jess Ryerson .. Tom Drake 

Art BirdweU .. Lon Chaney. 

Clint Gnnston ........ William Campbell 

Johnny Bee ... Jeffrey; Stone 

Henry Devers ...James Gleason 

Sally Guiiston .. Judy Meredith 

Damion Bard .............. Phillip Terry 

Setting Sun... Richard Devon 

Niblw ...Ian Mac Donald 

John Briggs . Don Megowan 

Job King man . Nolan Leary 

Joe . Kelly Thordsen 


“Money, Women and Guns” title 
doesn’t have much to do with the 
product but is apparently dedi¬ 
cated to the proposition that magic 
in the billing will overcome the 
lack of it in the production. A 
myserious will and the suspense 
involved in carrying but its terms 
supply the plot for the Howie Hor¬ 
witz production, directed by Rich¬ 
ard EL Bartlett. Satisfactory for 
double-bill booking. 

Jock Mahoney is the frontier de¬ 
tective hired to unravel the. my¬ 
stery caused by the will of an old 
prospector, „ bushwacked by three 
guns. Mahoney must track down 
each name mentioned ih the will 
and qot only make sure each bene¬ 
ficiary Is legitimate but, in the 
process, find the killers. In the 
course of his investigation he 
meets and falls in love with Kim 
Hunter, mother of Tim Hovey, one 
of these named in the testament. 
He also solves the mystery of the 
murder, when he discovers that 
Jeffrey Stone, who has been wan-[ 
dering through the picture as a 
mystery stranger, was one of the ] 
three gunmen—but a repentant; 
one—who took part in the killing, j 

Montgomery Pittman’s screen- 
: play is interesting -and Bartlett's ; 
[direction is capable, although lack¬ 
ing. in much tension. Mahoney 
does a rough-hewn job of the rest¬ 
less detective, but Miss Hunter’s 
t talents are wasted in a routine role, 
j Young Hovey contributes some hu¬ 
mor, and others in the cast who 
make effective contributions in¬ 
clude Stone, Gene Evans, Lon 
Chaney, Tom Drake, James Glea- 
i son, William Campbell and Judy 
[Meredith. 

I Philip Lathrop’s Eastman-color- 
CinemaScope photography is a plus 
value. Powe. 


Menace in the Night 

Melodrama for second billing. 
{BRITISH) 


Hollywood, Sept. 25. 

United Artists release of a Gibraltar 
Production. Stars Griffith Jones, Lisa 
GastonL Vinceht Ball; features Eddie 
Byrne, Victor Maddera, Clifford ‘ Evans, 
Joan Miller, Leslie Dwyer, Leonard Sar»h.<;. 
Produced by Charles A. Leeds. Directed 
hy Lance Comfort. Screenplay by Norman 
Hudis and John Sherman, from a novel, 
"Suspense,” by Bruce Graeme; camera, 
Arthur Graham; editor, Peter Pitt; music; 
Richard Bennett. Previewed at Goldwyn 
Studios,' Sept. 26, ’58. Running time, 

78 MINS. 

Rapson .............. Griffith Jones 

Jean Francis .. T.isa Gastoni 

Boh Meredith . Vincent Ball 

Art...,.Eddie Byrne 

Ted . ....... Victor Maddern 

Inspector Ford .Clifford Evans. 

Victor’s Wife .............. Joan Miller 

Victor . Leonard Sachs 

Toby ..*.Leslie. Dwyer 

Postman’s Widow ..Jenny Laird 

Betty Francis..Angela White 

Mrs. Francis .. Barbara Couper 

Auntie ... ... Marie Burke 

Bank Manager.....Andre Van Gyseghant 


Instead of falling down; London 
Bridge draws up in “Menace in 
the Night,” and, in so doing, al¬ 
lows a sleek British sedan and its 
robbery-prodded . driver to be 
hurled into the murky Thames, 
thus producing the only real thrill 
this Scotland Yard epic has to of¬ 
fer. All English film, apparently 
made two years ago and just now 
picked lip fob U.S. release by 
United Artists, it has scarcely a 
peg to sell it on and likely will 
live its life as a somewhat off¬ 
beat filler. 

Charles A. Leeds produced the 
Gibraltar . Production on what 
couldn’t have been a very hefty 
budget, but scenes of internal Lon¬ 
don. will be bonuses for -American 
audiences. Norman Hudis and 1 
John Sherman screenplayed from a j 
Bruce Graeme novel called “Sus¬ 
pense,” and, although too talky in 
the first reel or two, it’s a fail- 
script when the action rolls around. 
Direction by Lance Comfort, like¬ 
wise, picks up in direct relation 
with the action. 

Story is a simple one, revolving 
around four Britishers who! plan 
and execute the robbery of a. mail 


van hauling 250,000 pounds sterling 
worth of soiled banknotes to the 
furnaces. But;’it seems, there’s an 
eyewitness—a fetching blonde who 
co-operates with' the bobbies until 
threatened by one of the "culprits 
—and then there's- an overzedous 
reporter who’s out to scoop Lon¬ 
don’s other dailies. The robbers 
bicker among themselves,'result¬ 
ing in one death and three remain-, 
Ing who steal from each other, and” 
finally there’s the big chase, at the 
end of which the leader drives off 
the bridge. 

Performances, with few high¬ 
lights, are nonetheless adequate. 
Lisa Gastoni, as the blonde, is fine 
to look at, and she manages to 
create a considerable amount of 
fear. It does seem strange, though, 
that, despite a thoroughly British 
family, she converses in a delight¬ 
ful continental accent. Griffith 
Jones, as the gang leader, and 
Vincent Ball, as the reporter, are 
fine, and Clifford Evans, as the 
inspector, Eddie Byrne, Victor 
Maddem and Leonard Sachs, as the 
other gangers and Leslie Dwyer, 
as an- underworld barber, are good. 

Cameraman Arthur Graham’s 
work is generally proficient in spite 
of frequent overexposures, with 
editing by Peter Pitt and art di¬ 
rection by John Stoll adequate. 
Philip Martell directed an excel¬ 
lent Richard Bennett musical score 
that turns out tq be more exciting 
than most other aspects of the film. 

Ron. - 


Le Gorllle Tons 
Salne Blen 


(The Gorilla Greets Yon) 
(FRENCH; FRANSCOPE) 

Paris, Sept. 30. 

Pathe release of Raoul Ploquin pro¬ 
duction. Stars Lino Ventura, Bella Darvi, 
Charles Vahel; featdtes Pierre Dux, Rene 
Lefevre, Robert ManueL Directed by 
Bernard Borderie. Screenplay, Antoine 
Dominique; Jacques Robert, Borderie, 
from the novel by Dominique; camera, 
Louis Page; editor, Pierre Gaudln. At 
Balzac, Paris. Running time, 105 MINS. 


Gorille 
Moll ..... 
Colonel .. 
Inspector . 
Lawson. .. 
Kanas ... 


Lino Ventura 
... Bella Darvi 
, Charles Van el 
.. Rene Lefevre 
. -. Pierre Dux 
Robert Manuel 


Film kicks off what may turn 
into a long, lucrative series here. ■ 
It concerns a secret service man, 
known as “The Gorilla” forever 
caught between gangsters and the 
police, to whom he must remain 
unknown. This allows for plenty 
of fights, dolls and intrigue. Well 
manned, slickly paced, it is okay 
entertainmentwise, but emerges 
for only possible dUaler fare out¬ 
side of its own country. 

“The Gorilla” is investigating 
stolen missile plans which brings 
him into contact with counter¬ 
feiters, dope peddlers and high 
ranking espionage agents. He 
comes through via his shrewdness, 
great strength and wise chief who 
overlords it all via quiet mastery. 

With top actors in the many 
overdrawn parts, the film is ac¬ 
ceptable on most counts and is 
helped by Lino Ventura’s miming 
of the clever, strong and pugna¬ 
cious Gorilla. Bella Darvi is a 
fine, perverse gun moll and tech¬ 
nical credits are helpfuL This is 
played straight, unlike the suc¬ 
cessful Eddie Constantine parody 
G-Man films it seems to be emu¬ 
lating. Mode. 


Metro’s Hot W 

Continued from page 
films.' “Defiant Ones” (UA), 
which likewise was just getting 
started as the month ended, did 
well enough to finish fourth in the 
final week. Also new, “Hairy 
Black and Tiger,” (20th), was un¬ 
even but managed to finish 10th the 
same week. “Wind Across Ever¬ 
glades?’ (WB), another newie, 
wound up 11th another stanza dur¬ 
ing the month. 

"Raw Wind in Eden” (U> did 
well enough to be runner-up .film 
one week. “Certain Smile” (20tb) 
was 12th one round in weekly 
[ Variety , ratings. “La Parisienne” 
(UA), which was eighth in Au¬ 
gust, was in a like, category to 
cop 12th place . another’ week. 
Same applies to “Tank Force” 
(Col). “Night Heaven Fell* 
(Kings) finished 10th dn weekly 
ratings another stanza. 

“Kings Go Forth” (UA) added 
additional coin in .bigger keys 
early in the month. Same was 
true of “Proud Rebel” (BV) and 
“Twilight for Gods” (U). Last- 
named was lOth-pIace winner in 
August 

“South Seas ^Adventure” (Cin¬ 
erama), which was launched in 
Chicago late last rilonth, promises 
to measure: up to its showing in 
N.Y. at the Warner where now 
in its 12th week. It goes into the 
same houses where Cinerama sub¬ 
jects have played as soon, as 
“Search for Paradise” winds up 
its runs. 


She Didm’t Say Nat 

(BRITISH-COLOR) 


Naive, but warmhearted piece 
'of IriSJt blarney. Fairly amus- 
‘ ing.mixture of comedy, whim¬ 
sy and sentiment which lacks 
marquee value.- 


London, Sept. 30. 

Associated-British release of a Sergei 
Nolbandov production. Features Eileen 
Herlie, Niall MacGinnis, Ray McAuaUy, 
Perlita Neilson, Liam Redmond, Betty 
McDowell, lan Bannen; Directed by Cyril 
FrankeL Screenplay, T. J. Morrison and 
Una Troy, from Una Troy’s novel, “We 
Are Seven”; camera, Gilbert Taylor; edi¬ 
tor, Charles Hasse; music, Tristram Carey. 
At Studio One, London. Ru nn i ng time, 
85 M|N$. 

Budget Monaghan.... Eileen Herlie 

Mary Monaghan....Perlita Nielson 

Tommy Monaghan...... Wilfred Downing 

Puppy Monaghan....Ann Dickins 

The Twins.Teresa & Lesley Scoble 

Tougby Monaghan..Raymond Manthorpe 
Jamesy Casey .......... Niall MacGinnis . 

Matthew-Hogan.Patrick McAlinney 

W illiam Bates ...... .. Jack MacGowran 

Mrs. Bates . Joan O’Hara 

Jim Powers ..... Ray McAnally 

Mrs. Power .. Betty McDowell 

Peter Howard ..Ian Bannen 

Miss Hogan .'. Eithne Dunne 

The Film Director.Hilton Edwards 

Mi.«w Kelly . Maureen Halligan 

The Judge . Harry Hutchinson 

Darmody. Paul Farrell 

Maybella Merton ........... Shirley Joy 

Mrs. Merton .... Viola Keats 

Maggie Murphy ....Anna Manahan 

The Sergeant . Michael O’Brien 

Doctor Cassidy .. Uiam Redmond 

The Inspector .. John Welsh 


The story line of “She Didn’t 
Say No!” sounds a fairly risque 
theme for a film, unless treated as 
sharp satire. But actually it is a, 
warmhearted comedy. It’s naive* 
and loaded with -Irish blarney 
which sometimes teeters uncom¬ 
fortably to the verge of sentimen¬ 
tality. But the accent is mainly, on 
comedy and a competent bunch of 
Irish players extract a healthy 
measure of yocks. There are also 
some attractive moppets, -and it 
should appeal particularly